Yugimorphs
by spoonerdog123
Summary: They used to be normal... or at least something close to it. Then came a fateful encounter - a dying alien who gave them the power to morph, to transform into any animal they touched - and the lives of five teens changed forever. YGO chars, YGO canon/setting, Animorphs situation. Contains quite a bit of TFing.
1. Prologue: The Encounter

**14/1/2013: **This is currently undergoing a major rewrite - please be patient. The new chapter will come out once I've finished rewriting the story.****

DISCLAIMER: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, Animorphs, or anything else that doesn't belong to me. I only own this story.

**Summary: **A bunch of Yu-Gi-Oh characters, with the power to morph into any animal they touch, fighting Yeerks in Domino City. You don't need to know anything about the Animorphs series to understand this…  
**  
Time/Place: **The story's set in Domino City, right after the events of the Battle City arc and before any other arcs that come after that.

**Names:  
**Yugi Moto = Yugi  
Yami Yugi/Atem = Yami  
Katsuya Jounouchi/Joey Wheeler = Joey ("Wheeler", if it's Kaiba talking to him)  
Shizuka Jounouchi/Serenity Wheeler = Serenity  
Ryou Bakura/Ryo Bakura = Ryo  
Yami Bakura/ "Evil Ryo Bakura" = Bakura  
Ryuugi Otogi/ Duke Devlin = Duke Devlin  
Anzu/Tea = Anzu  
Hiroto Honda/Tristan =Tristan  
Marik= Marik  
Yami Marik/Malik= Yami Marik  
Odion/Rishid = Odion  
Seto Kaiba/Kaiba = Kaiba (occasionally "Seto", if it's personal - or if he's with his brother)  
Mokuba Kaiba /Mokuba = Mokuba

–{Thought–speak looks like this.}–

**Arcs: **Each one is separate in its own right, and they can be read in any order you please. Each one tends to focus on a certain character (shown in brackets), although the whole team is generally involved at all times.

Prologue – Ch 7: First Time for Everything (Tristan)  
Ch 8 – current: Betrayal (Marik)

**Prologue: The Encounter  
**  
**TRISTAN  
**  
The streetlights were dim, barely illuminating the street. The night air was temperate, and I breathed in deeply as I strode down the road. It was the end of just another day in the dull, ordinary life of Tristan Taylor, the end of the first day of our two weeks school holidays. It'd been a blast – I'd just seen a movie, and now I was heading home. The rest of the two weeks should have just flown by, no worries, no cares.

I didn't expect the encounter – none of us did, to be honest. If you had told me that half an hour from this precise moment, I'd be running for my life, I'd have laughed and called you an idiot. The evening was peaceful, quiet. Nothing was horribly wrong with the world.

"Hoi, Tristan!"

Instincts from the old gang days kicked in, and I spun around – but I'd simply run into my friends. I relaxed immediately, more so when I saw a familiar teen waving at me, accompanied by his usual group of friends.

"Hey, Jou!", I hollered, strolling over to the blonde. "Joey Wheeler, long time no see!"

"Come off it. It's been what… A whole day?"

I grinned playfully. "Too long, too long."

"So, uh… Headin' home?" I nodded in reply, and Joey beamed. "Hey, we're headin' dat way, too... well, more or less. C'mon, walk with us for a bit!"

I shrugged. "Ah, all right. Not like I've got anything better to do."

I looked around at the group – we'd all known each other for a long while. Joey Wheeler, my best friend, stood on my right side, blonde hair shining red with the street light, honey brown eyes gleaming mischievously. We'd known each other since kindergarten – he was quick to rush into fights, and I was always the one who had to restrain him. He was also fiercely loyal – if there was anyone I'd trust to have my back, it would have to be Joey. To be honest, there used to be a time when it was just the two of us; him getting into fights, me bailing him out. We hung out together at school, we played together at my place, we got into trouble and joined street gangs together, and we really were the best of friends…

But then two years ago, things changed. You see, Yugi Moto came into our lives – and like we always did to people we were unsure of how to treat, I will shamelessly admit that we bullied him initially. We didn't beat him up, but we certainly caused him pain trying to teach him to be a man. We teased him, tried to crush his dreams - Joey even stole part of his precious Millennium Puzzle and threw it into the school swimming pool.

And how did he react?

Well, we were both surprised when Yugi took a beating for us as we were getting our butts handed to us by a certain thug we'd somehow upset – and even more so when the wimp actually stood in front of us, demanding that our tormentor stop beating _us_up. The action so touched Joey that he retrieved the stolen Puzzle piece and gave it back to Yugi, and we all became friends that day. Yugi gave me hope again, a real reason why I shouldn't give up. He was just so… so selfless, that it kinda moved me as well.

I smiled to myself – speaking of Yugi, Joey was talking animatedly to the kid now. The two made a strange pair - while Joey was a very outgoing person, tall and athletic, Yugi was the opposite – far quieter than the blonde, and short enough to still be occasionally mistaken for a thirteen year old (though he was of course seventeen, like everyone else here) (1), amethyst eyes and tri-coloured hair making him stand out in any crowd. Yugi made pretty much all the decisions in our little group – we all had a certain level of respect for him, what with being the world's greatest gamer, King Of Games and all that.

To my left was Duke Devlin, the guy I'd been with most of the time during the Battle City dueling tournament. Joey and Yugi had been playing their all–important card games, and had much time to chat – and so I'd hung out with him. We'd teased each other, made fun of each other, and argued who exactly had the dating rights to Joey's sister Serenity the entire time. Since that tournament had finished, Duke had been running his business here in Domino City – selling his own game, Dungeon Dice Monsters, in the game shop Yugi's granddad ran. The well-tanned teen stared off into the distance; his startling green eyes and raven black hair making him look like something that wasn't of this world.

Pale, nervous fingers tapped Duke on the shoulder. "Umm… You OK, Duke?"

The teen shook his head. "I'm fine, Ryo. Just… Thinking, that was all."

The last member of our group - the shy, white haired Ryo Bakura, the Millennium Ring glittering gold around his neck, mumbled and backed away. Duke rounded on him immediately, eyes blazing. "Honestly, Ryo – why do you have to be so _shy_? I don't bite!"

Ryo's eyes darkened, and I could have sworn his teeth were sharp and pointed for an instant. "_I think Ryo's just being silly. __**You're**__ the one with more to fear, after all…_" he whispered, but so softly that only I, now walking right next to him, could hear it. The pale boy blinked, then shook his head as if to clear it, his face once again normal – and I shivered. Both Yugi and Ryo had Millennium Items with personalities inside, and while Yami, as we liked to call Yugi's spirit, was a pretty swell bloke, excelling in games, Ryo's spirit, Bakura, was… well, downright horrible, excelling in cruelty and thievery.

Ryo himself was kind and gentle, hovering at the back of the group as always – yet I watched the boy carefully for any more signs that he might still be possessed. Bakura, unlike Yami, had a tendency to take Ryo over without any sort of advance notice, and often without the teen's permission. And he definitely wasn't a nice guy - our first encounter with the spirit had nearly ended with Joey, Yugi, and myself trapped as miniatures in Ryo's role playing game, Monster World, for the rest of our lives. Fortunately, Yami had beaten Bakura at said game, forcing the spirit to let us out of the figurines – but even so, that didn't make him a friend of mine. He hated Yami with a passion I didn't think was possible – and probably wouldn't be against taking me out if I happened to get in the road of his plans…

Joey looked over at Duke, having not heard the second half of the exchange. "Just thinking? Hah, if ya ask me, Duke thinks _waaaaaay _too often for 'is own good!"

Duke shrugged, as usual always able to make a smart-ass response to Joey's teasing. "I don't suppose _you'd _know much about thinking, Joey. Beyond thinking about your stomach, I mean…"

I smiled, looking at them all. We'd had some crazy times during Battle City – but that's another story.

_Hmm…_ I checked again.

Someone was missing.

"Where's Anzu?" I wondered, and knew from the look on Yugi's face that it was exactly the wrong question to ask. Anzu had been his childhood friend, often defending him from Joey and me, and they'd grown quite close. But lately, she'd been spending more and more time with some group called _The Sharing_. My parents worked for The Sharing over in America – though I hadn't the foggiest as to what they actually did. It sounded a bit like Scouts for not only teens, but adults and kids as well, from what I could gather. They'd asked me many times to join and make them proud - and every time I'd refused (mostly on the grounds of being considered as girly by Joey, who would no doubt would never have left me alone if he'd found out about it).

Duke yawned. "Anzu's gone to another one of those silly _The Sharing_ meetings."

Joey raised an eyebrow. "_Again?"_

Ryo piped up nervously, "Well, it all seems like just harmless good fun to me… Maybe we should go to one of those gatherings before we judge the group."

"Hah, it's probably just some silly friendship club!" Duke laughed, and Ryo shrank away in fear of the noisier boy. I shot the pale teen an encouraging look – Duke didn't mean to frighten him, but Ryo was inherently scared of everything. He'd lost any sort of trust in anyone, due to his dark side; he was constantly worried that anyone he got close to would be hurt by Bakura. It was a snap decision – I decided to stand up for the kid.

"Hey, Ryo's got a point. It might not be all that bad…"

Duke pulled a face, fluttering his eyelashes. "Good grief Tristan, I didn't know you were going girly!"

Joey grinned slyly. "Says de guy who wears jewelry all teh time…"

I laughed along with the others, then frowned as we started heading through shabbier districts, and towards the familiar run–down construction site. Increasing my stride, I moved to come alongside Joey.

"Hey, where are we going?"

The blonde shrugged, speaking in that strange American accent of his. "Thought we migh' as well take a shortcut through dat old constr'ction site. Or… Are you chicken?" A smirk; a sneaky grin that teased me and as always infuriated me, making me bristle in response. He was challenging me – no way was I going to pull out!

"'Course I'm not chicken!" I snapped, racing him to be the first to climb the derelict fence ahead of us and land on the other side. It was just a silly construction site, right?

Little did I know that what happened next would change my life forever.

* * *

The two of us cleared the fence at practically the same time, laughing wildly as we landed on the other side. Still giggling with exultation, Joey and I helped the Yugi and Ryo over, Duke lifting them up from the other side. Only when our two shortest group members were both over the railings did he move, cat–like, over the fence, in a show of dexterity – as always, far more graceful than any of us.

"Showoff", I grunted, and he glared.

"Hey, I wasn't even _trying _that time."

"Um… uh… A–are you sure this'll be alright?" Ryo asked, his voice shaking with slightly more fear than it usually had.

"It'll be fine!" Joey laughed, and I once again reassured the nervous teen as he cringed at the noise;

"I've done this loads of times – just an empty construction site. You walk straight ahead, and there's holes in the fence; no need to jump or anything. Besides, the whole place is abandoned. It'll be all right."

Ryo swallowed hard, but nodded –

–And a strange blue light appeared in the sky – too bright to be a star.

Besides, it was _moving_.

Yugi squinted. "What on Earth?"

"Uh… a meteor, maybe?" I suggested.

"How about anuclear warhead?" Duke, of course.

Ryo's voice was barely a whisper. "I… I don't think that's something you'd find on Earth."

"Nah, dat's gotta be an' alien spaceship!" Joey sniggered, and Duke and I started giggling.

And that was when Yugi sat down very suddenly, putting his head in his hands. "Guys… I think it _is_ a spaceship. There's a voice… in my head… and it wants help…"

A perfect silence, then in an equally perfect unison: "_What?_"

Unsurprisingly, Duke attempted to act cool. "Well, I guess that means that Yugi's finally cracke-"

**WHAM!**

There was a flash of bright light that blinded us all, then a roar and a vibration that shook the ground. Instinctively, I grabbed Ryo and dived for cover behind the nearest pile of rubble.

I don't know how long the blindness lasted for, or how long it took for cloud of builder's sand to properly clear and settle. What I do know is that when I finally opened my eyes and peered out from behind my cover, I saw something incredible. The thing was something straight out of a dream, or a nightmare perhaps – though don't remember wondering if it was actually real. It was a pure white, composed of smooth metal and sweeping curves, towering imposingly over us. Two oval engine pods bolted under large curved triangles swept off either side of the body of the craft, and it rested on a set of what looked like skis, which I guessed were its landing gear. In short, it was unmistakably what we'd just laughed about.

An alien spaceship.

There was a stunned silence, during which I automatically looked for my friends. Joey had grabbed Yugi, as I'd expected, and had taken cover behind a column to my left. They both looked shocked. And huddled in a ball next to me was Ryo…

"Hey, it'll be alright. We ain't dead yet."

"What's out there, Tristan?" he whispered. "I–I don't w–wanna l-… l–look."

I took a deep breath and steadied myself. "You were right. It isn't anything from Earth."

His eyes widened. "Is everyone all right? It didn't land on them… did it?"

"They're all just f–" My breath caught in my throat.

_Duke!_

After a second, I let out my breath in relief as the raven haired teen stood from behind a piece of rubble. He was shaken but otherwise uninjured – but the sigh choked when I saw what he was doing.

Ryo huddled closer to me, still confused and in a state of shock. "W–w–what's going on?"

"It's Duke. The other two are fine, they're hiding… but he's walking over to the spaceship." I whispered back, watching the teen move easily across the rubble.

_"You idiot!"_, I wanted to scream – but I couldn't do that, for fear of whatever horror might be inside the ship, ready to come out and eat us. I could only hope that he wouldn't be stupid enough to–

–Duke knocked softly on the outside of the thing; though it seemingly had no door. "Come out. We're not going to hurt you."

_Dammit, he really is stupid enough!_

I tensed, ready to spring at anything hostile – but out of the corner of my eye, I saw Yugi shaking his head at me. I raised an eyebrow in question, and he tapped his head.  
"What?" I mouthed, and he shook his head in frustration, then pointed at the spaceship, then at his head. I frowned, wondering if the shock had caused some sort of brain damage or something – and then my eyes went straight back on Duke.

A door had simply…_appeared_in the side of the ship, and a ramp had extended down to the ground – but that wasn't what got my attention. You see, an alien – yes, an actual alien – had stepped out of the ship, and was now coming down the ramp – and it certainly wasn't any cute little green Martian. No, this thing was way stranger than that.

Imagine a centaur – but with a daintier, deer–like horse half, and thin, weak – looking arms. Now imagine that instead of a horse's tail, it has a tail that is long and muscular – curved over its back like a scorpion's tail, but ending in a wicked scythe–blade. Finally, imagine that it is blue – furred all over, that its face has a flat nose with too many nostrils, and no mouth, and that it has a second pair of eyes, constantly moving on stalks atop its head. That final product is pretty much what came out of the spaceship.

Needless to say, Duke was taking a step back for every halting step the thing took down the ramp towards him – until his eyes widened and he froze. The creature staggered slightly, and I realized with a jolt why he'd stopped. The alien was badly injured – scarlet blood dripping over its blue fur from a gaping wound in its chest. The boy tilted his head, eyes wary. "Are… are you okay?"

A strange thing happened then: Duke's face went blank – like he was listening to far off music. He dropped to his knees, then rested on all fours. About twenty seconds later, the alien looked over at Yugi and Joey's hiding spot – and Yugi stiffened, then relaxed, staring into space. Joey looked alarmed. He tried talking to Yugi, but to no avail. Next, he went to shake the other boy – but a second later, his hand dropped away, his face becoming peaceful.

The alien looked over at us – and huddled close to me, I could feel rather than see the shiver that ran through Ryo. His body jerked, then sagged against my side, and he began to tremble. "What is it?"I murmured to the teen, but he didn't answer. The shaking stopped – and that was when I realized his face had gone blank as well.

Minutes passed – slow, tense minutes. There were red lights appearing in the sky above us now, and fearfully, I looked around at my friends.  
_What's going on?  
_  
Duke was the first to cry out in pain and snap out his trance, the others following in the order they'd lost focus, one by one. The teen stared up at the alien, and I could have sworn I saw _tears_ in those cold, green eyes.

"No…" His face went blank again, but only for a few seconds. There was a silence, then he stood. A single tear moved down his cheek, and he wiped it away. With barely a sound, the raven – haired teen walked over to the craft, and went inside – and for once, I was too scared to go after him.

With a jolt, I realized that the thing was looking right at me. And then, it happened.

A voice, in my head.

–{Child...}–

_What the–_

–{Do not worry.}– The words were more than just words – they had a calming, soothing effect. My mind quieted instantly, and I felt the alien smile.

–{I understand your fear. You are but a child, you have never seen something like this before. That said, we are running out of time; you are the last I will contact. I am Elfangor Sirinial–Shamtul, and I am an Andalite, a war prince, a hero. Listen to my story, for you will be the last living thing to hear it…}–

The voice was everywhere at once now, and I felt experiences, memories, emotions that were not my own wash over me. (2) Elfangor had lived a long and rich life; he was a celebrated war general now, fighting ceaselessly in the war against his peoples greatest enemy – the Yeerks. He'd fought in many battles, some of which he had won, some he had lost…

_What are the Yeerks?_ I wondered – he must have felt my confusion, because he showed me a slug.

–{This is a Yeerk. The scourge of the galaxy, my mortal enemy. They have enslaved whole races, they take over the minds of sentient creatures. I hoped to stop them from invading Earth, taking another people… It seems I couldn't do it, in the end…}– A soft laugh echoed through my mind. –{This… is my final mission. The wound is fatal. I won't survive much longer…}–

The voice broke into a series of racking coughs. Waves of pain shot through my mind, and the calming sensation evaporated instantly. Without really knowing what I was doing, I cried out in frustration, in pain. "Why?"

–{All things… must pass away eventually. The torch… goes to you, and the other four. Come out, and I will show you. Maybe… maybe now… Earth will have a chance…}– Opening my eyes, I saw the alien – Elfangor – raise his head. –{Come here, all of you.}–

I was in total shock by this point, still trying desperately to comprehend everything I'd just been told. Dimly, I felt Ryo get up beside me, pull me with him. Together, we walked towards the ship.

What happened next changed my life forever. Duke walked out of the craft, and carefully placed a blue cube – about sixty centimeters on each side – in front of the Andalite. My mind reeled, and Joey grabbed my shoulder as I threatened to fall, supporting me without a word.  
–{Ah, you're all friends… That makes it easier for you to work together.}–

The Andalite didn't smile – he couldn't, having no mouth – but I felt a burst of laughter flit through my head. It felt like… like… like the sun was coming out, and all was perfect, just for a moment – then I saw Elfangor glance upwards, towards the red lights. His voice darkened.  
–{Yeerks. We don't have much time. Place your hands on the cube – this is my gift. Make use of it.}–

It was a solemn moment as one by one, we laid our hands on the box, which glowed in response to our touch. I noticed that each of the others got that blank look when they touched it, saw Elfangor focus on them, and guessed he had something to say to each of them.  
Ryo looked like he was about to burst into tears when the Andalite spoke to him, biting his lip as he removed his hand from the cube. A glance from the alien was my cue to go last, placing my hand on the box.

Information flooded through my mind. –{This is the one thing the Yeerks do not have, that you will have in the coming war. Morphing technology – you acquire any animal's DNA by touching it, then you may become it.}–  
I wasn't really listening to the rest of what he said, too busy wondering about the general logistics of that one. Alien invasions, that I could swallow for a bit. Turning any animal we touched? Well, that just made me wonder what drugs I was on, or alternatively who had knocked me out and made me have this psycho dream.

But it was his last words that made me shiver and wonder if it might just be real.  
–{Be strong, little one. You're going to need to be strong for your friends.}–

–{Yeerks. Leave.}– he commanded, as I removed my hand from the cube. The red lights in the sky were bathing us all in a strange light, making us look like demons now.

Joey bristled. "No! We can save you, patch you up and–"

He reached to help Elfangor up, but the Andalite pushed him away, getting unsteadily to its hooves. –{It is too late now for me. Go!}–

"No!" Yugi growled. "We're staying with you!"

–{Visser Three is coming, child. If you want a chance at saving Earth…}– He broke off, and waves of pain went through my mind. –{Just… leave me. Please.}–

Joey began to object, but Duke shook his head, commanding an instant silence. "Guys… It's his final wish. Don't you see?"

Yugi bowed his head. "A final wish…"

I glanced up at the lights above us. "They're close now. Let's get out of here!"

Yugi's eyes narrowed, and the Puzzle briefly flashed gold around his neck. His voice sounded lower now – I guessed that Yami had briefly taken him over. "_Right. We split up, then. Make it hard for them to find us. I'll go with Joey. Tristan, you take care of Ryo. Duke, can you manage on your own?_"

There was an evil hiss to my left, emanating from Ryo. He laughed confidently, shadows obscuring his features. "_Oh, I think 'Ryo' can do quite well on his own… _"

Duke shrugged. "If you like, you can go on your own as well. The more targets they have, the harder we'll be to catch."

–{Go!}–

The red lights were closing fast on us – a glint of black metal in the sky made me leap for cover.

**WHAM!**

Another bright flash of light, but I wasn't blinded – having wisely shut my eyes and pressed my face against the ground as the ship touched down. I started to creep away, letting the darkness hide my form, and-

–{Well, well, well. What have we here?}–  
An evil chuckle in my head made me stop and crouch behind partially destroyed brick wall.

–{A little Andalite? Oh, and maybe he brought a few friends along?}–  
Peeking around the corner, barely able to breathe, I saw it. Another Andalite, its lip curled in a sneer of cold command, as it pressed its own tail blade against Elfangor's neck.

And yet, Elfangor still held his head high. –{Visser Three, the only Yeerk to possess an Andalite. Leader of the Yeerks' Earth invasion… My, am I honored.}–

Elfangor's voice dripped sarcasm, but the Visser seemed to take him seriously. –{So you should be! Now, cower before me!}–

The wounded Andalite staggered, but remained upright. –{No, I don't think so.}–

–{Oh?}– At least thirty more aliens bounded out of the hovering craft – all were six foot tall, bipedal lizards, and covered in lethal blades. –{How about now?}–

Elfangor just laughed, even as the bladed aliens surrounded him. –{My, all these Hork–Bajir… Is this really necessary?}–

The Visser shrugged. –{No. I heard that you had some little friends hiding around here, and I think I'd rather like to meet them. Personally.}–

–{Well… I don't think you'll find too many other Andalites around here.}– Elfangor let out a series of pained, rasping coughs. –{Why would you pursue me, Visser?}–

–{Why, I just wanted to meet a celebrity! Elfangor, terror to the Yeerks! Ha. I'm honored, I must say. }– His eyes narrowed.–{I think you'll find that you are of no use to us, mortally wounded, but your buddies… well…there's many Yeerks who'd just _kill_ for a nice Andalite host body. You, on the other hand…}– He tossed his head. –{I could be persuaded to let you live out your days in peace. If you just told me where they'd gone…}–

–{No.}–

–{I should have known… Proud Andalite, so stupid… I must say that I've looked forwards to this day for years. You, Elfangor, as a stuffed head on my wall. What a trophy you'll make!}–

–{Not a trophy. A travesty, Visser. I massacred so many of your people before I went… I don't even regret one of them. And I'm not about to bow and scrape before you now.}–

–{Just die.}– The tail blade flashed, beheading Elfangor in one quick strike.

It was all I could do not to yell and charge at the creature – and then Visser Three's head snapped around, looking for us. –{Find them!}–

I ran, feet flying over the rough ground, hearing the shouts of the Hork–Bajir right behind me. They spread out, but I had a good head start on them – and besides, I knew where the easiest places to get in and out of the construction site were. Rolling under a loose piece of fencing, I raced down the darkened streets, and I didn't stop running until I got home. In fact, I quite literally dived into bed, buried my head in the pillow and prayed that it was all just a bad dream, or some hallucination caused by drugs.

But of course, it wasn't to be…

Notes:  
1. Yes, they are all seventeen in this story, with the exception of Kaiba (who is nineteen), and Mokuba (who is fourteen). It does fit with canon, though – Yugi's a tenth – grader (about 15) in the original manga, and I'd give about two years for the Duelist Kingdom/Battle City arcs to occur. Mokuba was stated to be thirteen in the manga during Duelist Kingdom – a year from that makes him fourteen. Kaiba was in his last year of high school when the others were in their tenth year – thus, he'd be in twelfth grade (about 17), and two years from there makes him nineteen.  
2. In the Animorphs canon, Elfangor's voice filled the Animorphs with whatever emotion he happened to be feeling at the time. It had a definite calming effect, and it's been stated several times in the books that someone who's being spoken to privately in thought – speak gets a "blank" look. Here, everyone feels Elfangor's full experiences, which would be stronger than emotions – hence, they all stiffen.


	2. Ch 1: Denial

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, Animorphs, or anything else that doesn't belong to me. I only own this story.**

Reply to Guest Review:

Matt: So I'm just on the first chapter and I want to know if Ax is in this  
story or not?

Me: As of the 17th chapter, Ax is not in this story. There are plans for him to show up sometime around the third arc, though.**  
****  
Chapter One: Denial**

DUKE

I moved quickly – there was no point in a panicked run, since that would just alert the Yeerks to my presence. Even if this happened to be a nightmare – and the chances of that were quite slim by this point – I didn't wanna _lose_ to it.

I'd been fast, and had gotten clear of the explosion when the Yeerk ship landed – and fortunately for me, the Yeerk leader sounded like he was gloating in my mind. I was well clear of the construction site by the time he'd finished, and heading off down the street.

Problem: My place was a good way away from here – I now needed to get from here to the other side of Domino City, without being spotted. A lone individual would stand out at this time of night…

_Hmm._

I tilted my head, considering my options as I slipped down a dark side alleyway. There wasn't a whole lot I could do, beyond calling my chauffer – but then again, I'd told him to take the day off – the guy was probably stoned. I risked being spotted if I tried to get through on foot, and a taxi driver could easily be a Yeerk. Then again, I couldn't stay here either. The Visser would surely have soldiers looking for us now. And they would be looking for five–

_Five teenage kids! That's it!_

I smirked to myself – they wouldn't be looking for animals. If I could morph something, then I could get away without being spotted…

A flapping noise behind me made me turn, to find a bundle of tattered rags which just barely resembled a man. A crow sat on the thing's shoulder.

"Sir… if you could spare…"

I felt like something had been triggered inside me – and now the knowledge of the Andalite bubbled, still fresh in my mind. (1) Come to think of it, I'd always wondered what it'd be like to fly. Always wished for wings, just for a little bit – just so that I could soar like a bird…

_The morphing technology allows you to…_

"Thankyou", I breathed, and the thing looked confused.

"I am sorry, sir?"

_Touch the animal, then focus on becoming it. It will go into a light trance…_

I swallowed. "Old man, you may have just got yourself a deal." I pulled out a handful of bills.

"Ten thousand yen, right here. And all I ask is that you let me hold that crow for ten minutes."(2) I grinned. "Come on, it's pretty good. A thousand yen a minute."

At the sight of the money, the bundle's eyes lit up, glittering with pure greed. "Yes! Yes!" He thrust the bird into my arms without a single protest, and I rolled my eyes as he snatched the money. If the others asked where I'd gotten the crow morph from, I'd just say I found an injured one.

The bird was quite tame, making it easy to concentrate on. Closing my eyes, I thought about its black plumage, its sharp beak, and of course the wings. I built a mental image in my mind of that crow, then imagined it flying high into the sky. If this worked, his bird could get me right back to my house.

Minutes passed, and I began to worry.

_What if I've somehow been high on drugs, and now the police are after me? Or… What if morphing just doesn't work for humans? _

I set my jaw at that, concentrating as hard as I could.

_No. Not giving up yet!_

A warm tingling went right through my body, and the bird went limp. My new knowledge told me that this meant that the acquiring process had been completed.

I waited about thirty seconds, and the crow sat up, alert once more. With a yawn, I handed the bird back – only just holding in my pleasure behind a mask of boredom. "Thanks. Now, get out. Keep all ten thousand yen."

"Yes, sir!" The beggar scrambled away, joyful at this new turn of events – and I focused. No doubt the Yeerks would find me soon if I stayed here; judging from the inhuman shouts, they were getting closer.

Closing my eyes, I once again thought about the bird.

_Please, please work.  
I don't want to be a Yeerk slave…_

The first changes were subtle – so subtle that I didn't notice them initially. After a moment of concentration with no obvious change, I shrugged, and continued walking down the alleyway.

_I had best keep moving, until I can work out how to become this bird and get out of here._

I scanned my mind for anything from Elfangor that might help me to morph, but the only response I got was to "_be patient_", whatever _that_ happened to mean. It wasn't really helpful.

After perhaps thirty seconds, I reached the end of the alleyway, paused – whatever things the Visser had set on my trail were definitely closer now. The road forked straight ahead, and to the left and right – if I didn't morph soon, the direction I took would make or break my escape. Peeking around the corner, I whipped my head left and right, scanning in all directions before folding my arms.

_Hmm. Which way should I g–_

I glanced down at the pavement a moment – and my eyes widened as I stared at my left arm.

My skin had darkened from tan to dark brown. As I watched in fascination, holding my arm right out in front of my nose, it went a dark grey. The buildings around me rose higher, and with a start I realized that I was beginning to shrink; my clothes hanging loosely off me. My breath caught in my throat.

"It's… it's really happening…" My bones started to hollow, and a thrill went through me. Soon, very soon, I'd be experiencing flight itself.

I guessed that morphing probably should have creeped me out, and it did to an extent – after all, my whole body was shifting and creaking into something else entirely. It was only the thought of being able to fly that kept me from screaming or whimpering as I continued to morph, black feathers rustling over my shoulders and down my back, my legs withering and shrinking into my now chubby body.

The things were very close now, and their noise made me cringe in fear, the changes instantly speeding up. I stumbled as my feet decided to change, stretching out and out into talons – my shoes were a lost cause, shredded in seconds. My clothes were far too large for me now, draping on top of me; and as the changes reached my arms and face, I closed my eyes.

After maybe thirty or forty seconds, the strange noises of bones snapping and organs moving stopped. Tentatively, I opened one eye, to find a view of what was on my right side. My left eye gave me a view of what was on my left side, and there was a huge blind spot where my new beak jutted out of my face. The shouts had reached the alleyway just behind mine now, but whatever things were after me had no hope of finding me now.

After all, they weren't looking for crows.

_I win! Take that, nightmare!_

With a yell of delight that came out as a rasping _caw_, I jumped up into the air. Wings moved like I'd been doing this all my life, lifting me off the ground with ease.

_Fly_, I told my new body, circling higher over the rooftops. _Fly to my house…_

And so I did.

* * *

I woke the next day, blurring visions in my head.

_What a strange dream._

I wanted to believe that I had become a bird. After all, flying had felt so good – but it was probably just a cruel dream. It wouldn't have been the first time, after all. With a yawn, I sat up–

And stared at three black feathers, lying on my dressing table. I staggered over to the mirror there, examining my whole frame from head to toe to make sure that I was still human. Only after a full minute did I actually realize that there was no need – I had changed back to human in the dream… not–dream… well, whatever it was. I blinked; oddly enough, I couldn't remember what I had actually done last night – or at least, nothing _sane_ I'd done last night. My brain seemed to think that the thing about meeting an alien and becoming a bird was an actual memory.

_Maybe it is…_

I considered this for a long while. On the supporting side of the argument was the crow feathers, and the odd new knowledge in my head. In my experience, dreams weren't particularly detailed – but I had an almost encyclopedic knowledge of how morphing worked, and what Andalites and Yeerks were. On the other side of the argument… well, the whole thing didn't seem particularly likely to happen.

_Well, only one way to find out._

With a sigh, I focused on the crow, to see if I could morph – I'd be wondering about that all day if I didn't get some quick proof. I watched my reflection carefully for any changes – and six seconds later, there were feather patterns flashing up my cheeks, my body shortening, beginning to tilt forwards… With a gasp of shock, I immediately focused on being human, and the morphing reversed, leaving me stunned and sitting on the floor.

_I've… I've gotta tell the others about this!  
_  
I stood, mind racing as I went to get my pajamas off and put some day clothes on. There'd been five of us at the site… the question was, who to visit first?

_Take on the hardest first._

I thought about this. Yugi and Joey were presumably full of the usual "we've gotta save the world" stuff – they weren't going to take much persuasion that this was real, now that they'd been shown a real alien. One of them could well have morphed already. Ryo was probably still hiding under the covers, but he'd accept his duty readily enough – and besides, Yugi and Joey had probably visited him already. The only one who would need any real evidence…

_Of course._

Cracking my knuckles, I strolled out to my car.

_Time to give Tristan Real World Taylor the wake–up call of his life._

* * *

**TRISTAN**

I woke up, shaking. My body ached all over – like I really _had _been running hard last night.  
No. No, it was just a dream – it _had_ to be. I chuckled softly to myself. Maybe I'd partied a little too hard, and that trippy vision and this pain was the end result.

_Yeah, just a dream. Pretty weird sort of thing, but it wasn't real.  
It can't be real._

DING DONG!

"Ugh… Coming!" I called, dragging myself out of bed. I checked the alarm clock – I'd slept in 'til nine–thirty in the afternoon. Whoever had rung the doorbell was impatient.

DING DONG!

"And I said, COMING!"

DING DONG!

"Sheesh, door to door salesman these days…" I pulled on my trousers and shirt, threw on my trademark jacket – there was no time for shoes. On the way out, I saw a note left on the kitchen table:

_Hey, Tristan. Door was wide open, so we let ourselves in. We wanted to talk about what happened in the construction site, but you were out cold, so we thought we'd come back tomorrow, about 9:45.  
See you then!_

Joey, Yugi, and Ryo.

DING DONG!

_'What happened in the construction site'… Gee, wish I could remember something other than those trippy visions. _I shrugged, and opened the door.

"All right, what do you wan– Oh. Hi, Duke."

He looked around like some sort of monster was after him. "At last… Erm, can I come in?"

I rolled my eyes, stepping away from the door. "What do you think? Of course you can come in!"

He glanced around nervously. "No-one's home, aside from you?"

"Duke, I'm _always _home alone, and you know it!" I groaned.

Perhaps I should explain that one. I'd lived on my own in the house I'd been born in for a while now, living off the money my parents sent every week - much like Ryo did, although he lived in a flat, having been expelled from just about every school he'd tried due to Bakura sending the students into comas. My parents were living in America, where they did important work for The Sharing – they'd moved right after I'd gotten back from Duelist Kingdom. Apparently this city wasn't suitably accommodated or something, I dunno. They told me I'd be OK, since I had Joey to protect me from the thugs, and I'd done very well up until now and it would be all right. And the work was super, mega, ultra important… something about kids. It didn't really make a lot of sense, but I just accepted it as being part of the weirdness that was The Sharing.

As a result, whenever Yugi felt down, whenever Joey got beaten up by his dad, whenever Ryo felt scared to sleep because of the Millennium Ring he wore around his neck and quite literally _couldn't_ take off, whenever Duke's lethal combo of being a CEO of his own company and attending school got too much for him… well, they'd come here. I didn't mind if they cried or didn't want to tell me what had gone wrong – I just got out the spare mattress and said they could stay as long as they wanted to. I was the quiet one. The one who would listen to whatever their problems were, and wouldn't ask questions.

Duke checked over his shoulder, then walked in, immediately pacing back and forth across the wooden floor of the living room. "Did you see the alien last night?" He stopped. "Do you remember? You do, right?"

I blinked. "Oh – you had that dream, too? Weird, wasn't it?"

His voice shook. "It wasn't a dream, Tristan…"

I cracked up laughing. "Of course it was! Yeerks? Andalites? Being able to become any animal we touch? That's just fantasy!"

I knew almost immediately that I had just used a very bad choice of words – instantly, the teen stiffened. His eyes flashed menace, and his gaze bored into mine like a green laser, forcing me to blink and look away. Inwardly, I groaned - there were some things Duke would just let go of, and some arguments he'd refuse to back down from - and as silly as the case he was arguing was, he obviously wasn't going to give up.

"It. Was. Real."

I growled. "Well, go on. Prove it!" I waved a hand. "Prove to me that Visser Three and the Andalite and morphing were all real. Go on!"

Oddly, Duke just shrugged. "I can't prove to you that the first two were real… but that last one I can prove, no problems whatsoever. Can we go to your room?"

I blinked in surprise, but led him up the stairs to my bedroom anyway. Sat on the mattress, patted the spot next to me. "Well, go on. Show me this wonderful proof. Let me guess, you got a handful of blue fur off the Andalite?" But he didn't sit immediately, standing over me as he considered his reply - and instantly I felt uncomfortable. In my head, I cursed – he was _using_ me.

A slight smirk crossed his lips. "No. Something better than that. I'm going to morph, right in front of you."

My jaw dropped, then I started giggling uncontrollably. "Are you _kidding_ me? Okay, okay. Look, joke's over."

"Nope. The nightmare's only _just_started." The raven – haired teen sat down, closed his brilliant green eyes… then opened them. "Hang on. It only works with tight clothing. Morphing, I mean. I don't want to tear anything – you wouldn't _believe _how much designer clothes cost these days."

He pulled off his leather shoes, then his socks, standing barefoot on the hard wood floor. He tugged off his waistcoat, placed his bracelets on top of it, before finally letting his hair out of the headband he usually kept it bundled into; evidently his black shirt and tight pants were tight enough for him to morph in. He turned to me, his expression deadly serious. I tried not to snigger – as when placed on the features of someone who was usually smirking, that looked very strange indeed.

"OK, sit very still. Just to warn you, morphing's really weird. Don't scream or anything." I rolled my eyes, logically assessing the options available. I knew full well that no matter how hard he tried, Duke was not going to be able to change in the least - which got me thinking about _why _he'd lie about this. Either the teen had evidently lost his mind, or this was a _really_ good act on his part, and part of some strange prank... But either way, I didn't believe anything would happen. With a yawn, I stretched right out on my bed.

"Fine, fine. Let's see you… what did you call it? …'Morph', Duke." I snorted. "Go on. Turn into a blinkin' animal, if it makes you happy."

He just nodded, closed his eyes again. For a few seconds, nothing happened.

"Nothing's happening, bozo!" I teased, and a pair of green eyes opened, glaring at me.

"Oh? Take a look at my arms, before you make that judgement."

I glanced at his bare, tanned arms, and noted a tattoo pattern of feathers racing up them. I grinned – the young CEO was evidently trying to fool me. Technology could do all sorts of things these days - why not tattoos that would slowly form when his arms were exposed to sunlight? After all, Duke was mega-rich - if such a thing existed, he'd be able to get hold of it.

"Tattoos. Very funny-"  
**CRACK!**

That was the sound Duke's head made as his nose and mouth melted and ran together, then suddenly bulged out into a beak shape, hardening like setting cement. I jerked back from him at the suddenness of the change. "Whoa!"

Now the tattoos on the boy's arms became 3-D, black feathers erupting everywhere, replacing his clothing at an astonishing rate. I realized with a jolt that I wasn't having to crane my neck upwards to see his face anymore. Duke had been standing over me, but now he was only my height – he was shrinking. His eyes went from brilliant green to black, and moved to either side of his head as the feathers raced up his face, his neck disappearing altogether. I wanted to look away from him, but I just couldn't. There was something horribly fascinating about watching your friend, someone you'd known a few years, twist and mutate into something else…

Duke was now shorter than the bed, forcing me to lean over the edge in order to watch the final stages of the transformation. There was a horrible snapping sound as his arms decided to migrate to his back, rotating and spreading to become wings. His legs were getting shorter, scales wrapping around them as his toes melded, then split into two sharp claws, a third talon growing out of the spot where his heels had been. His whole body was becoming chubbier by the second, shrinking to bird proportions, tilting forwards as a full set of tail feathers appeared behind him.

_He's… he's…  
A crow._

I blinked in shock. It looked like my friend hadn't actually been lying or delusional – unless we both were imagining the same thing, of course. He'd been telling the truth - where Duke Devlin had been standing only three minutes before, there was now a black, raggedy _bird_. And I'd seen the whole transformation, too – much as I hated to admit it, there were no tricks. One minute he'd been here, and the next…

The crow hopped onto my bed, and then from there onto my knee, tilting its head to one side as it watched me. I gave it a poke – it seemed real enough, just as real as the teen who'd been standing over me not long ago.

I put my head in my hands."Oh, man… I'm still dreaming, aren't I?"

–{No, you're not. It's real, Tristan. Face it.}–

I sat up. That was _Duke's_ voice, in my head! What was going on? "Duke? No way!"

–{Yes way!}–

I jumped. "Wha?"

–{Oh, good. I guess it works, then.}–

I blinked slowly, trying to get used to the idea of a crow talking to me. "So... you can talk in my head… Like the Andalite?"

The crow nodded – a strange sight, a bird nodding thoughtfully like that. –{Yeah. Elfangor could talk to us with no mouth, so I thought I'd see if I could do it.}–

_Can you hear me, I wonder…?,_ I thought hard at the bird. Silence. "Did you hear that?", I asked eventually.

–{Nope… I think it only works if you're in morph.}–

I stroked the soft head feathers as calmly as I could, although inwardly I was desperately trying not to scream. The feathers were like silk beneath my fingers, and freakishly real. Parting them, I found grey skin.

"You seem… rather real."

–{That would be... Oh, I dunno. Maybe because I _am_ actually real?}–

I let that one slide. "I thought you had to touch an animal to become it. In that case, how did you become a crow?"

–{I found one with a broken wing in the street on the way home. Remember what Elfangor said? Injuries don't carry over in morphs.}–

I sighed. "So, if you just turned into a crow… That would make the Yeerks real as well, wouldn't it?"

–{Yes. The Andalite said we should fight them.}–

"_We_? Excuse me?"

–{Well, you, me, Joey, Ryo and Yugi. They were there too, remember?}– The crow preened itself. –{By the way, flying's totally awesome. You should try it sometime.}–

"OK, now I know I've gone nuts." I laid my head in both hands once more, and wondered if we'd both taken drugs or something – or maybe we'd both gotten completely drunk and somehow hallucinated. Actually, maybe I'd just taken the drugs, and Duke was teasing me into believing more of this madness...

–{You haven't gone nuts!}– the crow protested.

"Then I'm dreaming."

**SNAP!**

"Owww!", I yelped, leaping back from the bird and rubbing my wrist. "You bit me!"

The crow tilted its head to one side, looking almost menacing. –{Oh, so you felt it? Must be a pretty realistic dream, then.}–

"Alcohol. Or drugs. And you're teasing me into believing more of this."

–{Look, you've got to just accept it!}– Duke was getting frustrated with me now, and my head hurt. This _couldn't _be true!

Something inside me snapped, and I rounded on the crow. "What, accept that the world is being invaded by a bunch of aliens? And the only way to save it is to become animals? And only us five can do it? ARE YOU KIDDING ME? Duke, I'm not as gullible as you are!"

–{But I'm not kidding, Tris…}– the crow "said" quietly.

"Well, then you're even more damn gullible than I thought you were!"

The bird remained silent, seemingly sulking. Ignoring it, I remembered the note, and stood up, checking my watch. 9:43, and the note had said 9:45 – that meant they'd be here in a few minutes. Duke flew onto my shoulder as I stood there, and I sighed. "Regardless of whether you happen to be real or not, the others left a note on the kitchen table – they dropped in before, but I was asleep. They'll be here in a few minutes. Assuming you are actually a bird, I'd suggest you unmorph and -"

_–_{You mean _de_morph}–, he corrected, and I facepalmed. Typical smartass Duke to say something like that.

"Unmorph, demorph. Same thing, right?"

–{Probably not.}–

"Ah, whatever it is, just do it. I think I like you better as a smartass teen."

–{Why would that be?}–

"It's rather disturbing to hear your voice coming out of a _bird_", I deadpanned.

–{Ah.}–

I walked over to the door. "I'll meet you downstairs – the rest should be down there by the time you're done. My guess is they'll be able to tell me what your motivations were for making me hallucinate like this."

The crow nodded thoughtfully once more, and glided back onto the bed. –{I think they'll tell you exactly what I told you.}–

"Wanna bet?"

The bird raised its wings in an obvious shrug. –{I wouldn't if I were you. Duke Devlin never loses a bet, y'know.}–

"This one's going to be a tough bet for you to win – even for you."

–{Hah, you _wish_.}–

* * *

I could hear the sound of organs squishing as I left, and I shook my head to clear it as I headed downstairs, closing the door behind me. Duke had just turned into a _bird_…  
No time to think about it. I was just hallucinating, that was all…  
Or dreaming. Or maybe, it was all real… I groaned.  
_Was this was what a hangover felt like?_

DING DONG!  
I sighed with relief, opening the door – but there was no–one.

"Hello?" A movement below me caught my attention, and I looked down. "Ah, there you are!"

Yugi and Ryo were standing next to each other, at the foot of the stairs leading up to the front door. A Golden Retriever was sitting patiently between them. Yugi looked up at me with that same nervous expression Duke had been wearing when he'd first walked in. "Hey."

"Are… are you a–all right, Tristan?", Ryo asked. "Y–you look pale." Actually, Ryo looked about ready to faint himself, but I wasn't about to point that out.

"Nah, I'm fine. Come in." I stepped aside, allowing them to enter. "Where's Joey?"

Yugi and Ryo exchanged looks, then they both looked at the dog. There was a silence, and I raised an eyebrow. The smaller boy shrugged, the two of them standing awkwardly in the doorway until I shooed them further inside and closed the door. "Um… That's what we wanted to talk about."

"What, the dog?"

"No, Joey. Although it's more to do with last night, really. We couldn't find Duke, he wasn't at home – so we thought we'd drop in on you instead. You were asleep, "

He was babbling – evidently nervous. "Well, make yourselves comfy. Sit down, at least." I lead them to my decidedly small dining table, and indicated that they sit - which they did, albeit as stiffly as possible. The dog also attempted to get up on a chair, but Yugi glared daggers at it, and it went and sat in a corner instead.  
"That's a rather… well trained dog there." I mumbled.

Yugi made a bold attempt to break the silence. "So… Have you seen Duke?" I gestured up the stairs as we sat around my table, deciding not to mention Duke's randomly becoming an animal in my bedroom just yet.

_No need to let Yugi know I've gone crackers, until I absolutely have to._

"Duke came here a few minutes ago. He'll be back down in a minute - he wanted to… uh… change his clothes." That was a partial truth, since Duke would indeed want to get his clothes back on – after changing into a human once more, that was. I relaxed at the table as best I could, trying to make the others relax a little with my body language."So, what's up?"

Ryo looked at me, eyes wide. "D-do you remember the a-alien from l-last night?"

I sighed, and looked at the ceiling. "We all had the same dream last night, didn't we?"

I was expecting him to back away from me, but the white – haired boy only shook his head. "N–No… It wasn't a dream, it was real. I– I mean… I, uh, I didn't believe Joey either when he b–b–banged on my door last n–night, but then he… uh… um…" Here Ryo broke off, shooting Yugi a look that said '_I don't want to explain this!'._ Yugi looked a little embarrassed, and they both glanced at the dog, who was chewing its paws on the carpet. A funny thought came into my head, but I ignored it.

"He _what?_"

Yugi fidgeted, sounding almost like Ryo in terms of awkwardness. "Uh… I don't think you'd believe me, but… uh…"

"What? He lost to you in a card game?"

"_Triiiiiiiistaaaaan…_" Yugi groaned, and I shrugged.

"Well, it must have been really embarra–" I frowned and broke off, noticing the distinctly odd behavior of the dog. "Wait a sec… Is that dog facepalming?"

"Isn't the correct term 'facepawing'?" Yugi replied. In its corner, the dog nodded, a very human nod – and I suddenly had a very strange feeling about that canine.

My eyes narrowed."Yugi, whose dog is that? Ryo wouldn't be allowed a dog in that flat of his, and I've never seen you with one."

Yugi's face went oddly blank for a second, then he sighed, and looked at the Retriever. "Yeah, I guess you've got a point. Tristan, watch this and try not to freak out."

"Freak out?"

"Trust me, it's freaky… Joey, you can demorph now."

Ryo promptly turned away and covered his ears, and I did a double take. "Wait, did you just say _Joey?"_

The Golden Retriever harrumphed in reply, and immediately fur melted into skin, the canine snout shriveling into a human face. The dog's legs suddenly stretched upwards, and I looked away as my best friend emerged from the dog. Joey looked pretty sheepish, as he rightfully should have, being stark naked.

"Umm… I sorta lost ma clothes when ah morphed. Ya wouldn't happn' ta hav anythin' I could borrow?"

I remembered what Duke had said earlier. "There should be something in my room. Duke said you could only morph tight clothes – you might want to grab some tight ones this time, in case you have to morph again today."

"Thanks, man!" He raced up the stairs.

Yugi blinked. "Duke already knows about morphing?"

I shrugged. "Well, he turned into a crow right in front of me in my bedroom."

The teen grinned. "I'll take that as a yes."

"Yeah, I found some crow with a broken wing on the way home. Tried it out as soon as I got home - I was showing Tristan here just before you came."

Now human once more, Duke strode down the stairs, having presumably witnessed the whole thing from the top of them, and sat at the table - pointedly ignoring Joey as they passed each other. As soon as the blonde was out of earshot, Duke raised an eyebrow. "By the way, what exactly was up with Joey being stark naked?"

Yugi shrugged. "Didn't morph tight clothing, apparently."

"…I see."

Yugi nodded. "Well, let's wait for Joey before we discuss this. We're going to need everyone's help in the coming fight."

Everything was going too fast – I didn't want to believe any of this! I slammed my head into the table. "Please tell me this isn't real…", I pleaded.

Ryo looked down at me with those innocent eyes of his that spoke volumes. "Um... uh... well... I don't want to believe it either, but… You s–saw a dying alien last night, Tristan. We all did. You listened to him… tell you _everything_. And then... Y- you saw another alien turn up and _kill_ him. You touched the… the, uh, box."

"So? It could have been some freaky hallucination we all had… I hear today's drugs really send you around the bend…"

"You saw Duke become a crow!" Trust Yugi to point out the obvious.

I waved it away."More hallucinations. I was sleepy. It must have been a trick - I mean, Duke's super rich! If anyone could pull that one off, he could!"

The raven–haired teen yawned. "You keep on telling yourself that."

"Don't worry, I will."

A now- clothed Joey came down the stairs at that stage, and decided to enter the argument.

"Sure, Duke becomin' a crow might not hav been real… but den you saw a dog turn inta me. So… Am I real?" He spread his arms wide, letting me examine him from head to toe - and looking at him, I didn't know what to think. His reasoning was sound, but… This couldn't be real. It just _couldn't! _People didn't turn into animals! Garden slugs didn't invade whole cities!

Ryo spoke softly, slowly, like I was some frightened animal that needed comforting. "It's real, Tristan-"

I smacked my head on the table, felt very real pain flow into my head - but I didn't care. I whacked my head against the hard surface several more times, pounding on it with my fist as the others watched in silence.

"No! No! I'm still dreaming! I know it!"

Yugi sighed. "Tristan, we've done everything we can to convince you. You _saw_ Joey come out of a dog!"

"I know, I know!" I yelled. "I... just..."

Ryo stood without a word, walked around the table and put his hand on my shoulder. "You _know _it's real… you just don't _want_ to believe it, do you?"

I wished he'd been wrong – but Ryo had a penchant for reading emotions, and he'd hit the nail on the head. I raised my head from the table, desperately trying not to yell. "Yeah… I guess you're right. None of us want to believe that the Earth's being invaded by parasitic aliens…" I broke off.

Joey's voice was unusually quiet."As far as we know, we're da only ones asid' from da Yeerks who know dat dis is happ'nin' - and we can't tell anyone. Elfangor said dat a Yeerk can read its host's mem'ries, so it can act jus' like its host. We wouldn't be able to tell da difference betw'n a non-Yeerk and a Yeerk, 'n if we explain'd it to da wrong pers'n…"

Duke made a slashing motion across his throat. "Curtains for us."

The silence was broken by Yugi, who of course was completely over the stranger aspects of this whole situation. I knew him well enough to know that all that mattered to Yugi was getting the world saved, regardless of the strangeness of it all.

"We need everyone to work together if we're to make a difference. I know it's short notice… but we don't have much time. We don't know how far these Yeerks have spread already – but we need to fight. Who's with me?"

He looked at the others, one by one. Joey nodded enthusiastically. "I'm with ya. Let's go kick some Yeerk butt!"

Duke considered it. "I can't help but think that this is going too far, too fast. I mean, we could get _killed!_"

Yugi looked pained. "But Duke, we don't have much time! Every day we wait, the Yeerks will just infest more people!"

The teen thought for a long while, and seemed to be arguing with himself at one point - but after a long silence, he slowly nodded. "You're right. We don't have much time…I'll be with you."

Yugi smiled. "All right, then. What about you, Ryo?"

Ryo stared at the table. "It's… not really my thing. I don't think I've ever fought before…"

Joey smiled at him, as gently and encouragingly as he possibly could. "Come on, Ryo. Think of it like a card game -"

"You don't kill people in card games!" he whimpered. "And… morphing creeps me out. I'm already scared, and I only saw Joey become a dog the once. I couldn't even watch the whole thing. A–and… If I had to morph… I mean, I really want to help… but… Killing? Morphing? I… I don't know if – if I c-c-could t-take it."

The Millennium Ring flashed gold around his neck, and the temperature in the room seemed to go down several degrees. Ryo's eyes narrowed, his hair spiked outwards, and he bared sharp teeth - it didn't take a genius to work out who was doing the talking. "_Well, I say yes. If he doesn't want to kill, I'll do it. And I'll __**enjoy**_ the looks on their faces when I tear them to pieces!" Bakura smirked triumphantly at us, and Yugi just sighed.

"I guess that'll just have to count as a yes from Ryo, then?"

"_Oh no, of course not…Kehehheh... I'll let him say it._"

The Ring glowed again, and the pale boy sagged. "I'll… I'll do it."

Yugi looked at me pleadingly. He knew as well as I did that while he might have been the leader, I was the one who held the group together. If I refused, chances were that Joey would get fed up with Duke's constant teasing, and Ryo would most likely hide in a corner if either of them tried to talk to him. "Tristan?"

I still clung on to the shred of hope that maybe, just maybe, it was all an elaborate ruse. I didn't fear death like Duke, I didn't mind the thought of going into battle as Ryo did – I'd been in enough street fights to have become as bad as Joey in that respect – and as for morphing… well… whilst it was weird and creepy, I guessed I'd get used to it. My problem with all of this was that I just didn't want to believe any of it. Earth, invaded by aliens? Us becoming animals to fight them?

"I still think you're just trying to trick me." I managed at last, and Joey raised an eyebrow.

"Tris, we've done all we can ta convi'ce ya. We can't do much mor–"

"Wait."

The voice was as soft as silk, as Duke leaned across the table towards me. His eyes captivated me, like they'd probably done to a hundred poor betters - he really was quite a hustler at heart. "I'll tell you what: I'll take you to an animal shelter or petting zoo or something, and you acquire a morph. Then you _become_ an animal. That way you'll know that we aren't lying, you aren't on drugs, I'm not on drugs, and you're definitely not dreaming. Would that convince you?"

I could feel four sets of eyes boring into me, and looked at the table instead. "I… I guess so. But… I choose the morph."

Duke nodded. "Deal."

Yugi stood, and I noted that he'd swapped places with Yami while Duke had been talking to me. "_Well, that's settled then. Joey, Ryo, you come with me. It won't be good if we all go together in one big group. We'll get ourselves some morphs while Duke's dealing with Tristan. Everyone, try to get a bird morph today if you don't already have one – we'll be flying to Kaiba's private zoo tonight to see about some more… dangerous morphs._"

Yeah, you heard that right: Kaiba's private _zoo_. The billionaire had just about everything anyone could ever want, and this included a massive zoo of sorts around the back of the Kaiba mansion, stocked with just about every animal you could think of, including very rare and nearly extinct specimens. It was extravagant, and basically existed for the amusement of the Kaiba brothers only - and of course, it would have some of the best treated, most dangerous animals we could get hold of.

Yugi blinked as he resumed control, then headed cheerfully for the door, the other two following. "We'll see you again at six o'clock tonight. Make sure the bird you choose has reasonable nighttime vision…" He went to head out, then stopped and stared at Joey.

"Uhhh, Joey? Anyone watching us would have seen two guys and a dog walk in there. They need to see two guys and a dog walk out. Know what I mean?"

Joey nodded, and took off my jacket, revealing the tight clothing he'd chosen underneath as his legs started to thin and bend. "You got it. Sorry, Tris' – I'll give your other clothes back later, OK?"

I nodded, and looked away as Joey's knees reversed direction, sending him flat onto the floor on his face.

"Agh! Stupid wood floor… Why can't it be carpet? Carpet wouldn't do thi-" he managed to complain, but the rest of his rant was distorted by his face bulging out horribly into a muzzle.

"So…" Duke stood up from the table, and jangled a set of car keys under my nose, completely ignoring the disgusting half dog, half human combo that Joey was by this stage. "Where do you want to go?"

Notes:  
1. In the canon, Tobias gained some of Elfangor's knowledge as a result of his experience, and you can see that happening with Duke here.  
2. Yu–Gi–Oh always used yen as its currency, with freakishly high values for its US equivalent. According to the footnote, "A hundred thousand yen" = "About $500 US". Here, Duke's offering the beggar about $50 US.  
3. Tristan refuses to believe that any of the construction site incident was real, so Duke turns into a bird right in front of him. This is a direct mirroring of what happened between Jake and Tobias in the books – however, it has a different resolution, as Tristan refuses to accept that it's real.


	3. Ch 2: First Morph

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, Animorphs, or anything else that doesn't belong to me. I only own this story.  
Chapter Two: First Morph**

We pulled up in front of the run-down warehouse, and Duke glanced up at the sign: _RSPCA Animal Shelter – all animals welcome!  
_He grunted. "Well, I guess this is it…Hey – don't get out of the car just yet." I sank back into the seat. "OK, this is what we're going to do. I'll go in first, then you – just wait five minutes before you go in. Car should lock itself once you're out, so don't worry about that. This is the RSPCA after all – they do animal rescues, take in abandoned kittens, that sort of thing – so the selection of animals will be pretty random, you can't be too choosy. Pick an animal you like the look of, and ask to see it… and hopefully, if you're carrying these–" and here he handed me a leash and a wallet as he continued – "-they'll let you touch the animal. Now, this bit's important: As soon as they let you do that, wait 'til they aren't looking – then place your hand on the animal and close your eyes."  
"So, I concentrate on it?"  
"Right – you don't just think about it, though. You _want _the animal, want to become it – picture the whole thing, as detailed as you can, in your head. It won't work if you're just petting it – you need to really concentrate. Understand?"

Feeling a little bamboozled by the sheer amount of unnecessary detail, half scared and half excited about my first morph, and fairly skeptical of the whole thing, I just nodded.  
Duke went on. "If it works, it'll go very quiet for about ten seconds. Don't go for lots of different morphs – just pick something, acquire it, head out. I'll meet you in the car."  
I nodded again, and Duke got out, whistling as he walked inside like he'd been here a million times before. I waited five minutes like he'd told me to, then headed in myself.

The sounds of barking, whining, hissing, meowing, snarling, and growling met my ears as soon as I stepped inside. I wandered around the place, walking past row after row of cages. Abandoned animals – mostly cats and dogs – of many shapes and sizes and breeds stood up at the bars, each one wanting its freedom. I felt for them all, but I kept walking, looking for one that really caught my eye…

_There!_ A stoutly built German Shepherd. Dark brown eyes looked at me hopefully, as I crouched at the bars.  
"Hey, girl." I'd owned a dog like this one once – Blankey. That was before my parents had moved to work for _The _Sharing, and it had been put down. The sign above the cage read 'POLICE TRAINED', so I guessed she wouldn't try to bite me or anything if I petted her.  
_Perfect._

I took down the cage number, and headed for reception, passing Duke on the way. He was holding a limp black cat in his arms, and winked at me as I passed.  
I grinned in reply, and marched up to the desk. "Hey. I'd like to have a little look at one of your animals, please." I gave her the number, flashing my wallet. "I know she's police trained, but I'd like to just check that out with this leash. I might pet her, too - is that all right?"  
The receptionist – an aging, grey – haired lady – beamed as soon as she saw Duke's wallet, and I could just imagine the cash register going off in her head. "Yes, of course!"  
She led me to the cage, opened the door."Ruby, sit."  
Surprisingly, Ruby sat obediently rather than make a wild dash for freedom, and she didn't even move when I put the lead on and fondled her ears.  
"Very obedient", I commented.  
"Yes - she's a new arrival here, probably won't be here for long", the lady smiled, sensing a possible customer – and that was when the phone rang.  
"Hold on a moment…"

As soon as her back was turned, I put a hand on Ruby's shoulder. "Time to see if this works…" I muttered to myself, and concentrated, wiping my mind of any other thoughts. Imagining wasn't too hard for me – I was a bit of a daydreamer in school, with a versatile imagination to boot. I focused, picturing the German Shepherd, every aspect of her, from her snout to her tail. Then, I imagined her bringing down crooks– it was what she'd been trained for, after all. And now, I wanted to be her, wanted to become her. I pictured myself, then pictured myself becoming Ruby and bringing down intergalactic crooks.  
_C'mon, girl. Loan me your strength…_ I pleaded, concentrating as hard as I could.

A warm, tingling feeling washed over me, and I opened my eyes to find the dog completely unfocused, her tongue hanging out of her open mouth. Just as Duke had said, ten seconds later she shook her head and sat up straight. I grinned, and shut the cage door behind me as the lady rushed back.  
"Did you like her?"  
I shrugged. "I might take her – I'll check some other shelters, maybe consider it."

And with that, I headed back to Duke's car.

The teen revved up the engine as I got into the passenger seat. "Did you get your morph?"  
"Yup."  
"What was it?"  
"German Shepherd."  
"Ah."

We didn't talk about morphing after that. Instead, we talked about video games, who Serenity loved better, who would kick whose butt if the Blue Eyes White Dragon faced down the Red Eyes Black Dragon, that sort of thing. It wasn't until we'd arrived back at my house, played a few rounds of good ol' Halo 2 (one of the few games I was actually any good at - I won every round, 15-0), and had finished the bowl of chips I'd put out for us to share, that I asked him how to morph. He yawned and stretched, then followed me to my room, where I glanced at my reflection in the mirror. I was a tallish boy, but unlike Joey, I wasn't built like a stick. Duke had once said that I was built like an ox, and I guess he had a point – after all, I was fairly strong in a fist fight.

"First, you need tight clothes." Duke looked me up and down, then reached into my closet and rifled through my clothes, pulling out a pair of jeans and a T-shirt. "These should fit fairly tightly on you. Put them on, and lemme know when you're done."

The teen strolled out, leaving me to change clothes. I glanced at the mirror again, without really knowing why. Maybe it was a comforting sort of thing – after all, I knew what to expect, and I got it. Chocolate brown eyes gazed back at me, and I saw dark brown hair, gelled up into a neat point at the front. I held up one hand, and saw blunt nails, short fingers in comparison to the long, slender ones of Duke's or Joey's. I blinked, and my reflection blinked back, then frowned as I did the same. It somewhat unsettled me that in twenty or so minutes, that familiar face looking back at me might not be reflected in the mirror any more…

Duke's fashion sense was impeccable as always – the clothes fitted perfectly. When I'd finished tugging the jeans on and getting the T-shirt over my head, I came out and called down the stairs, "Done!"

With a yawn, Duke lifted himself from the couch and strolled over, eyeing me approvingly as he tugged at the sleeves of the T-shirt. "Yes, that should be alright. Now, the real deal: 'Morphing For Dummies'. Hmm, I could write a book… Sell a few thousand copies, make a few bucks–"  
"Hey!"  
"Lighten up! I was only joking!"  
"Sorry, I'm a bit tense", I mumbled, and he shrugged.  
"Understandable, I suppose. After all, you might not be _you_ in a few seconds." I gulped, and he tilted his head with a slight smile. "Scared?"  
"Just… apprehensive, that's all."

With a curt nod, Duke sat down on my bed, and indicated for me to sit beside him. "It took me a while to figure it out, to be honest. You see, you've got to focus on the German Shepherd. Picture every detail of it in your mind, and think of all the things you can about it – doesn't matter what they are. Clear your mind, and focus on the dog."  
"Got it." I closed my eyes, and thought hard. I thought about Ruby, how devoted she'd seemed. How she'd sat quietly and just let me pat her. How she'd once run, and done all the police training. I thought of her, sitting in the animal shelter and hoping that maybe, just maybe, someone would pick her and take her home…

"Okay. Focused?" Duke kept his voice low, soothing, so it would not break my concentration, and I just nodded, keeping my mind trained on Ruby.  
"Now you have to _want_ to be the dog. Keep the image nice and detailed, and pretend you want to be her."  
_Right. I want to be Ruby._  
Carefully, I constructed a mental picture of her from the head down to her paws – and I _wanted_ to be her.  
I opened one eye. "OK, I think I've got it. So, now what?"  
"Now, you wait. You should be going bow-wow in a few minutes – don't worry if you lose concentration. Once the morph's started, you'll have to think about being human to reverse it. Or…" He paused. "I mean, that was the only way I could reverse my morphing, anyway. There might be other ways."

My hand itched, and I scratched it, the sensation snapping me out of my intense concentration. I glanced at the mirror, then laughed. "Woof woof, Duke. I don't see any dogs looking back at me."  
He tilted his head, smiling slightly. "Actually..."  
My hand itched again, and when I went to scratch it, I felt something odd – soft, too soft to be skin. With a start, I glanced at my hand – then did a double take.  
It was covered with dark brown fur, patched with lighter tan and black parts. Fur that was exactly the same colour as Ruby's, in fact. I blinked, then looked again – and now it was spreading rapidly up my arm.  
"What the-"  
I raced to the mirror, just in time to see my ears grow large and pointed, then slide up my head until they nearly touched on top. The fur was growing everywhere now at an astonishing rate, replacing my clothing, and I felt my spine literally stretch as a tail grew out behind me.  
"Duke, am I morphi-"  
I turned towards the teen, still sitting calmly on the bed, but tripped over my own feet – or should I say, paws – and went down in a tangled heap.  
Duke smiled. "You know, I'd say you are morphing."  
"Hwwray, strop dat!"

"Fine, fine!"

With a groan that sounded strange and guttural, I somehow managed to get back up, but my legs immediately began to bend and shrink. I struggled to maintain balance, but it was futile; eventually my knees reversed direction with a sickening crunch, and unable to stand on two legs, I fell over once again.  
"Grrrarrr!"

With a decidedly feral grunt, I landed on my hands and knees – though my hands were hardly hands anymore. I mean, the backs were covered in German Shepherd fur, and the palms were hard and calloused, looking more like paw-pads. As I watched, my fingers retracted into my palms, leaving behind stubby nails – which turned black and hard to become the dog's claws. My thumbs bent and shrank, then migrated up my arm, becoming dewclaws.  
I tried to speak, but my voice definitely wasn't working properly. "Rrr… Gwrrr?" I looked helplessly at Duke, who just shrugged in response. "Sorry, I don't speak dog."

Glancing up at the mirror as the changes continued, I could see that I was a strange creature now – my whole back half was basically all dog, fur was spreading over my body, and my hands had been replaced by canine paws. The changes affected my teeth next, as they multiplied and grew longer, my gums itching as they did so. As I watched, they became so large that they began to stick out of my human mouth. My whole head began to change – my nose flattened and became wet and cold, and my skull made a horrible sound as it slowly shifted outwards. The sight made me feel sick – my whole face was bulging into a long muzzle.

As I began to shrink, Duke went over to the mirror and tilted it for me, so I could see better how far I'd progressed. I was nearly all dog by now – my arms were lengthening, my legs shortening, my back changing shape to let me stand better on all fours. I looked up at Duke as the last traces of my humanity disappeared, fur replacing the last bits of my skin –

The dog's mind crept into my own, and suddenly I was HAPPY. (1) I looked up at the teen. _Perhaps he's got a ball I could have?_  
My tail thumped hard on the floor in anticipation, and I barked.  
He just sighed. "Tristan, get a grip on yourself."

I started sniffing the boy. _Hmm._ He'd recently been petting a cat, and he'd had bacon for breakfast! _Mmm… Bacon. Yum. _I started drooling.  
"Triiiissstan. Hello, Earth to Tristan. Duke Devlin himself here…"  
I continued drooling, spit collecting in a small puddle on the floor. _Baaaaaccccooon… _  
"Dude, the dog mind's got you. You are a human. Human, you hear me? Remember your parents? No? What about school? Remember school?"  
My ears pricked up – there was another dog outside. In MY territory! Thus, Idid the sensible thing – I started barking.  
The boy didn't seem to like that. "Bad dog! Tristan, the dog's controlling you!"  
Bad dog? I was a bad dog? But… but I wanted to be a _good_dog! I cowered and nudged him with my nose. Perhaps we could go for a walk?  
"Um, OK. This could be difficult. Actually, you're starting to scare me now – _Tristan!_Get away from there!"

I backed away from the window, where I'd been hoping to see the other dog.  
"C'mon, man. Remember me? I'm Duke Devlin, and you're a human. Your name is Tristan Taylor, and I'm your friend. Remember? We were playing Halo 2, and you completely owned me. 15-0, remember?"

I tilted my head, wondering what on earth the boy was on about. There was a leash on the bed next to the boy. Perhaps he'd take me for a walk if I brought him the leash?  
I jumped up on the bed, and grabbed the lead.  
"Hey! What are you – Get off the bed! Bad dog!"

My tail drooped as I put the leash in his lap and got off the bed. The boy rubbed his temples in obvious annoyance. "Tristan, get a grip! You're not a dog, you're a human! And you're not going for a walk!"  
Walk! There it was! The W-word sent me into bouts of ecstasy, and my tail thumped hard on the floor as I sat in front of Duke, waiting for the lead. He understood! Success!

The boy reached down and scratched me between the ears, and I closed my eyes in pure bliss.  
"Ohhhhh, Tristan, Tristan… I guess I'm just going to have to keep repeating myself. I sound like a broken record. You're a human, remember? Remember me? No? What about Yugi? Joey? Umm… Ryo? OK, so you were with me at Battle City…"  
_Battle City_. Yeah, I remembered that… I hadn't been a dog, though…

Wait, _what_? I wasn't a dog?

Memories flooded back, as I snapped out of the dog mind.  
"Okay, you're not looking at me like that anymore. I'll take that as a sign you're back? Nod for yes."I nodded, and Duke looked relived. "OK, good. You're in control now – the dog mind must be pretty strong to have taken you over like that. I didn't have many problems with the crow's mind... Anyway, if you want to talk to me, just think what you want to say at me."  
–{Can you hear me?}– I thought at the teen.  
"Yup."  
I moved my head from side to side.–{Man, these senses are amazing! I can smell everything! Hear everything!}–  
He flashed me one of his rare smiles. "Yeah, the senses are good, aren't they?"  
I couldn't help looking at him hopefully.–{Do you have… a ball? Or a toy I could chew on?}–  
"Umm…" Duke felt though his pockets and pulled out a short length of rope. "I wonder how this got in my pocket? Hmmm… Probably thought I could use it for something or other."  
He tied a knot in it at either end, then held it out to me at eye level. "How's this?"  
I pounced on it, trying to get it out of his grip.–{That's perfect!}–_  
_–––––––––  
"Hey, stop. I've got an even better idea…" Duke grinned and pulled the rope slowly away from me. I started to lose interest… but then the rope twitched. Instantly, all my senses focused on that rope, and my muscles automatically stiffened.

There was a perfect silence, then the boy smirked–

–and the rope twitched again! I pounced on it, and shook my head vigorously, letting out a little growl of excitement. –{Aha! I've got it!}– , I cheered.  
Duke laughed, and the rope wiggled in my mouth like a mad thing, trying to get away! The boy tugged hard, and the toy went speeding across the floor. –{Oh, no you don't!}– I yelled, leaping at it.

I pounced, again and again, the battle sometimes dragging me forwards, sometimes pulling the teen forwards instead. Eventually he got it off me, and tossed it into a corner. I ran after in and chewed on it, victorious.

Duke watched me chew the rope for a while, then came over to fondle my ears. Instinctively, I rolled onto my back, and he scratched my belly. While as a human I probably wouldn't be okay at all with Duke fondling me like this, the dog mind seemed to be enjoying it, so I let it go. Half an hour later, I was in heaven, and slightly annoyed when the teen pulled away. I rolled on my side and gazed pleadingly at him.  
–{Just a **little** more?}–  
He laughed. "Sorry, not this time. To demorph, just think about being good ol' Tristan Taylor again – concentrate like you did for Ruby. I'd close my eyes this time!" he added quickly, as I began to change.

I nodded, my eyes firmly shut as the changes began once more. When I opened them, the last traces of fur were vanishing into my body.  
Duke was watching me intently as I got up. "Well, how was it? Being a dog, I mean?"  
I considered. "The ears and nose were awesome… The belly rub was good, too." I added, somewhat sheepishly.  
"Maybe someday, when we get some free time together, we could do that again."  
"What, the belly rub?"  
"Yeah… You certainly seemed to enjoy it." Duke grinned slyly. "Maybe, deep down, you've got the hots for the one and only Duke Devli-"  
I rolled my eyes. "That was the_ dog_ mind talking."  
He raised an eyebrow. "If that's the case, you didn't exactly resist it…"  
I decided to change the subject. "Well, anyway – you should try getting a dog morph sometime. The senses were awesome. "  
Duke nodded. "Yeah, it's pretty good, being an animal – flying was amazing. There's a two-hour time limit, though."  
That caught me by surprise. "Where did you hear that?"  
"Elfangor told us, but you were presumably too busy being creeped out by his alien body to remember that one."  
"Now that I think about it…"  
"He said that you wouldn't be able to change back after two hours."  
"Ah. Right."

After an awkward silence, Duke stood. "Well, thanks for the chips. I'll head home now – business to be taken care of, memos to be written… Good luck finding a bird morph!" He wandered out of the house, humming to himself, and I heard the car engine start outside, followed by the screech of tires on the driveway. I sighed – he'd probably burned rubber all over my driveway again – then pulled a helmet over my head, and hit the streets on my motorbike.

I quickly realized that, unlike dogs, wild birds were unlikely to just let me walk up and pet them. After that, I spent hours driving around Domino, looking for a petting zoo or something similar. It was three in the afternoon by the time I discovered that there was a raptor show on in the south part of Domino and had managed to get over there.  
Ryo was hanging around the booth when I arrived, admiring a snowy owl – a ferocious looking thing, with blazing orange eyes.  
"Hey, Ryo!"

He jumped – I'd surprised him."Um, hi, Tristan…" he mumbled, grabbing me by the arm and tugging me towards a back alley. I obliged, following along - and as soon as we were out of earshot, he immediately turned and gazed at me with those innocent blue eyes of his.  
"Did you… Did you… you know…" He broke off, but I knew what he was going to ask. I tried to look as casual as I could.  
"Yeah. Duke found me an animal shelter."  
He tilted his head, his stare now boring into mine. "Did it… hurt?"I thought about it – it hadn't felt at all _right_, but it hadn't been _painful_.  
"Nah. Felt a bit… strange, but it didn't actually hurt." I mumbled at last - the boy nodded nervously."So, have you acquired your first morph yet?"  
"Yeah… A–actually, I acquired a… a c–couple..."  
I saw the question in his eyes, and relented. "All right, all right! I'll just acquire one of these birds, then I'll take you back to my house. You can morph there."  
He smiled – the best thing I'd seen all day. "Thanks, Tristan!"  
"No problem. Just wait here a moment – I need a bird morph."

I discreetly snuck around to the back of the stall, where three birds sat in crates, glaring at me – a massive, vicious eagle in the first, and an equally huge, angry owl in the second. Problem: I had to reach into the crates to touch them, and they'd have my hand off if I so much as tried it. I glanced at the third crate, labeled "Australian Kestrel". Inside was a smaller bird that didn't look quite as aggressive as the other two. I sighed – at least it wouldn't cause too serious an injury when I tried to touch it… though it could still probably remove one of my fingers if I wasn't careful with it.

I examined the bird carefully, gathering my focus. I knew what was going to happen, but did it anyway. "Here, nice birdie…" I whispered, sticking my finger in the crate.

**CHOMP!  
**  
The beak latched onto my finger, and immediately I focused on the bird to prevent my digit from being amputated. After a painful second, the raptor went limp in a trance, allowing me to pull my hand free of that killer beak.

I quietly left the stall, jumped back on my motorbike, and picked up Ryo. The journey home was uneventful as we roared back to my house, and I unlocked the door, leading the teen inside. He looked pretty nervous –biting his lip and shaking – and I felt bad all over again.  
"Ryo… You don't have to do this if you don't want to." I already knew what the answer would be, but I felt I had to ask the question somehow.  
The pale teen turned away. "No… Honestly, it's fine. You don't need to worry."  
_Bingo._ Ryo never wanted anyone to worry about him, not ever. I sighed."But I _do_ worry, Ryo."  
The teen bit his lip so hard, it drew blood. "Well, _don't!_" I shook my head – why he had to be like this, I had no idea.  
"Fine, then. So, has anyone actually explained to you how to morph?"  
"Um… No?"  
"Well, it's just like acquiring. You just focus on whatever you acquired, but you try to get a really, really clear image of it. Before you do, though…" I pointed at Ryo. "…you'll definitely want some tighter clothes than those."  
"I've got that covered." The pale boy kicked off his shoes and socks, and stripped off his jacket and pants, revealing boxer shorts and a tight, horizontally striped shirt. He moved to sit on the couch. "S–sure it won't… hurt?"  
"Of course not."

A sudden thought came to me at that point – I really didn't want a raptor flapping around in my house. If he wasn't in control, Ryo might gouge my eyes out or something – not really what I wanted. And it would be absolutely terrifying for the kid, too, if he couldn't control the owl and hurt someone.

"Okay, so I'll walk you through the morphing process. Before we start, let me warn you: The instincts of whatever you chose will kick in – whatever you do, don't be caught off guard. You're Ryo Bakura, and you're a human. As soon as you feel yourself start changing, don't stop repeating that. All right?" To be honest, I wasn't sure if a mantra would actually work or not, but it was worth a go. Ryo was trembling like a leaf as he nodded. He swallowed in anticipation, in fear.  
"Close your eyes." I suggested, and he just nodded again, eyes closed tight, bottom lip quivering. I tried to ignore it, and keep my voice calm. "All right. Now what did you choose?"  
"An… an owl. The white one."  
"Ah, a Snowy Owl. Good choice. Do you know, my kestrel bit me? Nearly took my finger off."  
That was probably the wrong thing to say to Ryo – one eye opened. "Uh… Mine didn't… Birds like m-me, I guess…"  
"Yeah, I guess… So, think about that owl. Think long and hard about it. Picture it in your head…"My voice dropped to a soft whisper. "And now you want to _be_ it…" The eye closed again, and the boy bit his lip once more. "Ryo… relax. You don't need to concentrate quite that hard. Just… I dunno, you just _need_ to become the bird."

The white haired teen started to shake, presumably concentrating even harder. I was about to point that out, but then I noted that his hair was beginning to melt and reform into white feathers. Whatever he was doing was evidently working - I spoke softly, soothingly, so as not to scare him."All right, Ryo. The morph's started. You don't need to concentrate any more… Just don't open your eyes. I want you to sit there, and say to yourself "I'm Ryo Bakura, and I'm a human." Remember that you're a human for me, OK? Don't actually picture yourself as a human – that'll probably reverse the morph…"

He nodded, his eyes still firmly shut as white feathers slowly spread down his back, spreading out to form a tail behind him. There were no changes for about a minute after that, while the bones in the teen's body cracked and thinned out, organs moved. The sounds scared the kid – he tensed up and shivered.  
"Wha- what's happening to me, Tristan?"  
"It's all right, Ryo. Just the noises morphing makes. Doesn't hurt at all, does it?"

Haltingly, the boy shook his head - and suddenly a pair of massive white wings came out of a slight bulge on his back with an almighty _crack_, the force sending him off the couch and to his knees. He let out a gasp of shock and a whimper as he hit the floor, and my jaw dropped in astonishment; at that moment, his hair a total mess of white bangs and feathers, wings spread behind him, Ryo looked like some sort of angel. Somehow, he was able to make morphing look significantly less creepy than me, Joey, or Duke. I shivered, remembering Duke turning into a crow in my bedroom that morning, that beak exploding out of his still – human face.  
_Man, Duke's morphing was disgusting…_

"Tristan? What's going on?" Ryo's voice shook and quavered with all out fear, and I was quick to reassure him.  
"Uh, it's fine. Just the morph again. Things happen strangely sometimes, all right? I promise, it'll be fine – you're doing very well. Not much longer now."

The changes continued, Ryo's feet now becoming the powerful talons of a raptor, human skin turning even paler than his normal pale tones; eventually becoming a deathly white. White feathers spread over his shoulders and down his front, replacing the white and blue fabric of the shirt. His legs shrank and bent, scales racing from his talons up to his shins, feathers rolling down his thighs. Seemingly instinctively, Ryo folded the massive wings around him, and hiding his still human face and arms from view as his whole body shrank. When they opened again, I was looking at the hardened, fierce face of a Snowy Owl, and watching the last trances of the boy's arms melting away into the proudly outstretched wings.

"Ryo. Are you still in control? Nod if it's a yes…"  
The bird nodded, its wings shrinking to a more proportional size. I could see it was pretty much all owl now, and knew what was going to happen next.

I tried to keep my voice as relaxed as possible. "Okay. This is the hard part, Ryo. The owl instincts are going to try to take over. Just remember that you're a human, and it'll be fine. You can't talk, but just think what you want to say and I'll hear it. All right?" The owl nodded vigorously, its eyes still tightly closed.  
Ryo's shaky voice came into my head.–{Tristan… I think I felt the owl instincts before. It wants to eat a mouse…}–  
I did my best to keep my voice soothing. "It's going to be fine, Ryo. You'll be all right…"  
The owl nodded again.–{Can I open my eyes now?}–  
"Yeah, sure."

Orange eyes snapped open, and I was treated to the sight of an owl doing a double take.  
–{Wha…? I–I've got wings? And… Feathers?}–  
I hid a smile. "Well, you _are_ an owl…" A sudden thought came to me, and I checked outside - the sun was low in the sky, just setting now. "Hey, I've got an idea. I've never flown before… I'll open the window and morph into my bird. We can fly together – get some practice, hmm?" Ryo nodded vigorously again, and I immediately concentrated.

–{ Umm… You don't suppose you could do it somewhere private, could you? I hate watching people morph…}–  
I shrugged, and held out my arm. "Yeah, sure. Here, jump on my sleeve. I'll take you to my room and open the window. We can fly from there – I'll morph just outside the door, okay?"  
Ryo hopped on, and sat perfectly still all the way up to my room. I deposited him on the bed, opening the window.  
–{Umm… Tristan? How do I fly?}–  
"The owl's mind might know… Hang on. Let me morph, and I'll be right with you."

Stepping back into the hallway, I took off my jacket and concentrated on that stupid Australian Kestrel, or whatever it was – very careful to think about being human while I was morphing, feathers rushing in a torrent down my body, my face bulging out into a beak…

Three minutes later, I strutted back into my room, now a lot smaller than I'd been when I walked out, with wings, and covered in feathers. I flapped my way over to the bed, alighted on the windowsill-  
No Ryo.  
Panic filled my mind. Where was he? Had some Controller shot him with a tranquilizer gun?  
–{Ryo? Where are you?}–  
The owl swooped past, thought-giggling like mad.–{This is sooooo fun, Tristan! Come on, try it! The kestrel should know how to do it!}–

I trusted the kestrel brain. 'Fly', I told it… and it obeyed. I floated high above the streets, Ryo wheeling below me.

After about fifteen minutes of glorious flight, a disgruntled looking crow flapped onto a branch below us.  
–{Oi! Can you try to at least split up? A lone kestrel's not that bad, and neither's a lone owl, but both at once?}– Duke called.

Ryo moved off to my left as I wheeled higher, but in our minds Duke took in a sharp breath.–{Tristan. There's a guy, teenager, orange hoodie, jeans, far too much jewelry, very tanned, thin as a stick. He's following you.}–  
–{Are you sure?}– My excellent raptor vision quickly found the guy. I flew one way, then the other, and watched as he changed direction, gazing up at me the entire time – the shadows cast by the buildings prevented me from seeing his face, but he looked familiar somehow.  
–{W-w-what are w-we going to do?}– That was Ryo, of course.

There was an awkward moment of silence. None of us were used to leading – usually Yugi did that.  
Eventually, it was Duke who made the decision.–{Ryo, go find Joey. He'll be somewhere to your left. Look for a Golden Retriever rummaging through garbage, and get him to follow you. You both need to head for an alleyway named Elmsworth.}–  
–{Yes, Duke.}– I didn't see the owl, but I guessed he'd headed off. I could see a black, feathered shadow flitting between the trees to my right – Duke, I assumed.  
–{OK, Tristan. This is the plan…}–

Hoodie Guy followed me everywhere I went, so I lead him on a wild goose chase through the alleyways and streets of Domino City. Thirty minutes later, I heard Joey's Brooklyn accent in my head.  
–{Duke, Tristan - me an' Ryo are here. Now what?}–  
–{Joey, demorph. Hide in the alley and wait for a guy in an orange hoodie to come past – jump him from behind, OK? Don't let him see you as a human – he's a Yeerk, I'm sure of it. He's been following Tristan for the last half hour.}–  
–{J-Joey's… um… demorphed, and he's r-ready}– Ryo informed us a few minutes later – I guessed we couldn't use thought – speak when we were human.  
Duke paused a moment before he gave the order.–{All right, then. Ryo, you'll want to hide too – owls don't generally hang out in alleyways. Tristan… Head for the alley.}–

Notes:  
1. Dogs are always portrayed as being HAPPY in the Animorphs canon, and are very hard minds to control in general. Tristan frequently loses control when he's a dog, for this very reason.


	4. Ch 3: The Chase

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, Animorphs, or anything else that doesn't belong to me. I only own this story.  
Chapter Three: The Chase  
**  
I flew over towards the alley Duke had chosen, my superior kestrel eyes spotting Hoodie Guy as he tried to keep up. I flew lower, circling over the alley a few times before landing atop a bin, just as Hoodie Guy entered at the other end.

"Andalite! " he hissed, and it was all I could do to not react as he advanced, pulling out what I recognized as a tranquilizer gun. "Ah, Visser Three will be pleased - " I tensed, ready to… do something, I guess – but Hoodie Guy got no further. A shadow appeared above him, and Joey followed it, landing on the guy's back and clocking him over the head, knocking him out instantly.

Joey grinned at me. "It's been a while since I've done that!"

I shrugged my wings as best I could.–{You're getting out of practice… Too many card games can do that to you, can't it?}– I teased.

Joey just shrugged, still grinning – refusing to admit my point."Maybe. Now what?"

A crow flew over our heads.–{Ryo, Tristan, demorph. Anyone watching you with a shred of sense would know that owls don't fly into alleyways, and neither do kestrels – they'd come to investigate. I'll warn you guys if anyone gets close while you're demorphing. Take the guy with you, and head to that old warehouse. We can question him later – he might know something useful. I'll get Yugi.}–

–{Got it.}– I concentrated, and felt my feathers start to melt into my body.

A few minutes later, three teenage boys walked out of an alley, dragging an unconscious fourth teenager into an abandoned warehouse. No-one batted an eyelid – that sort of thing happened all the time in this district. Joey looked up at the crane hook, and I knew what he was thinking. There'd used to be a gang who'd tried to make him rejoin their group. They'd strung him up from that hook, tasered him to an inch of his life. Later on they'd actually hung Yugi from the hook by his puzzle – nearly killing him in the process.

After maybe fifteen minutes, a car pulled up outside, and Yugi came into the warehouse, followed by a human Duke holding a coil of rope. The smaller boy looked at our captive and sighed. "OK, here's the plan. We'll be working in pairs to watch over this guy, and we'll do it in two hour shifts before swapping out for the next pair – we can't let him see we're humans, so we'll be in morph for as long as we're with him. We'll wake each other up when it's time for their shifts. Hopefully we might be able to get him hungry enough to get the Yeerk out of his head. I was scouting out Kaiba's private zoo today, so those of us not on a shift can go there, acquire some morphs, then come back and wait for their shift. Then we'll swap with the other guys. There's two sections in this warehouse – a front and back. There's a clock in the back section, so we'll know when our time's up. We can then demorph in the front section where the guy can't see us, and wake the next person to go on. Whatever you do, don't talk while the guy's awake – we don't want the Yeerk to know there's humans involved in this. Got it?"

We all nodded, and Yugi turned to me. "Tristan, Duke – you'll be up first. Me, Ryo, and Joey will head to Kaiba's zoo, get some battle morphs. Then I'll take you and Duke to the zoo, while Ryo and Joey keep watch. After that, we'll just keep on doing shifts and taking turns to catch up on sleep, until the Yeerk in that guy's head spills."

Duke held up the rope. "Who here can tie really good knots?"

Joey grinned and took it. "That would be me."

Duke promptly started shrinking, and I felt my nose go wet and cold. I frowned. "Uh, Duke?"

"Yeah?"  
"Umm… If you're morphing a cat and I'm a dog… Remember my issues with controlling the dog mind last time?"  
Silence, while Duke thought about it. Then…  
"Oh." Now cat-size, the teen tried to hobble over to the spare room with rapidly thinning legs, but fell over.  
"A little help here?"

As a disgusted Yugi picked him up, carrying him over, my arms became longer and I dropped to all fours in anticipation of my knees reversing direction. I caught sight of my reflection in the glass windows of the warehouse, and my stomach backflipped. It was all I could do to not throw up - I was a hideous creature by this point. I squeezed my eyes shut as hard as I could, and waited a few minutes.

On came the ears. On came the nose.

–{Whoa!}– To be honest, I didn't think I'd ever get used to that nose…

The dog was HAPPY, and once again it bowled me over. Impossible to resist!  
"Concentrate, Tristan." Yugi warned, as I went to sniff under the door to the spare room. There was another animal in there! A friend, perhaps?

I scrabbled the door open. Hello! A bundle of black fur and emerald green eyes greeted me. I raced over to it, and to my surprise it actually got bigger, its tail puffing up to twice its initial size. Twice the fun!

"HISSSSSSS!" the bundle said, its tail lashing from side to side. I watched the tail as it moved, swish, swish, swish… Suddenly, the very end twitched, and it was too much for me to not resist it. I lunged and – OW. Not HAPPY. Claws lashed across my nose, and I dropped back in confusion.

The bundle watched me, and a voice in my head said–{Triiiiisstan… Hello, earth to Tristan…}

_Oh. Right._

My tail drooped, my head hung. –{Uh, sorry, Duke. Dog instincts…}–

He thought sighed.–{It's going to be a looooong night…}–_  
_  
I trotted out of the room, Duke slinking along behind, to be greeted with Joey nearly dying of laughter.

"Ahahaha! Did you _see_ his expression when Duke got him one?"

–{Not funny, Joey…}– Duke thought growled, lashing his tail.

–{Uh, Duke?}– I couldn't take my eyes off the tail.–{That tail really reminds the dog of a nice rope. It's… uh… kinda hard for me to stay in control when you move it like that.}–

–{Well, this damn thing seems to move on its own!}– Duke flicked his tail in irritation, and I couldn't stop myself from snatching it in my mouth.

NOM!

SLASH!

Sharp claws ravaged my nose, and I backed down.–{Sorry, sorry…}–

Even Ryo was giggling by this point, and Joey was laughing so hard that he had to lean against the wall. Duke glared at him, which only made the blonde laugh even harder than before.

–{Will you stop that?}– Duke nudged the unconscious guy.–{We've got work to do, you know!}–

–{Exactly!}– I growled.–{And you people laughing at us isn't really helping!}–

"Sorry!" Joey grabbed the unconscious teen and dragged him through the door, into the back section of the warehouse. "Let's see who our Yeerk's taken, eh?" He removed the hoodie–

Ryo gasped. A tallish teenager about my age, the golden Millennium Rod tucked into his belt. Tanned skin, an even darker brown than Duke's, golden bracelets on his wrists and ankles, blonde hair swept back from his head…  
Marik Ishtar.

I shuddered, remembering what the Egyptian had done during the Battle City incident. Just how much pain we'd all had to go through, how he'd nearly killed Joey, how much pain Yugi had gone through to repress his evil side and make him good…

Joey sighed. "Of all the people we know that could have followed Tris', it just _had_ to be him."

"It can't be him!" Yugi wailed. "He can't be a Yeerk! He just_ can't!_After all I did to try and make him see!"

Joey shook his head sadly, bending over to tie Marik's hands behind his back. "I'm sorry, Yug'…"

–{If we can get the Yeerk to leave him, he'd be freed of its control}– Duke suggested.

Yugi's face hardened, and I knew what must be going through his mind. It didn't matter what Marik had done in the past, Yugi considered him a friend. And if there was one thing about that kid, it was that he cared deeply about all his friends.

"Yes. I'll free him, whatever it takes!" he declared, and stalked out the door.

"Hey, wait for me, Yug'!" Joey yelled, racing after him. Ryo followed Joey with an apologetic glance over his shoulder, leaving me and Duke alone.

Duke lay on the floor.–{I hope Yugi's all right. If he falls apart over this…}–

I nudged him with my nose.–{Don't worry, Yami will keep him safe.}–

–{I hope so, Tristan. I hope so.}– It was a solemn moment for both of us… until the cat's tail twitched.

–{Umm… Duke?}–

–{Yeah?}–

–{You know that tail?}–

–{No. Don't even think about it!}–

Unfortunately, Duke's tail once again reacted to the teen's irritation, lashing back and forth. It was irresistible!

NOM!

The cat let out a screech as I managed to get in under its claws, grab its tail, and start shaking it. It swung like a pendulum in front of my nose, screeching all the while, and the dog mind rejoiced. A toy that not only twitched, but made noises too!

–{Tristan! Put me down **RIGHT NOW!** Get a freaking grip!}– Duke's voice reminded me that I was Tristan the human–in–a–dog's–body, not Tristan the dog.

–{Sorry, sorry!}– I yelped, dropping the cat instantly. Duke stared at his tail with evident disgust.

_–{Tristan,_ you got dog spit all over it! That was a perfectly good tail! Ooh, I'll get you for this!}–

–{Hey, get those claws away from me!}– The cat chased me round and round the warehouse, both of us half yelling insults, half laughing wildly.

Unfortunately, we were still going when Marik woke up.

"What in the world…? Andalites!"  
I screeched to a halt in front of him, Duke crashing straight into me as I did so.

–{Oi! Why'd you stop?}–

–{He's awake!}–

–{…Oh.}–

–{Exactly. Now, we just sit here and don't say anything to him. Also, we pretend he didn't just see… that.}–

–{Agreed on the second point, but I thought we were meant to ask him questions!}–

–{Point taken, but he might recognize our voices if we talk to him.}–

–{I think I may have a way out of that problem.}–

"Let me out, Andalites!" Marik demanded, struggling against the knots Joey had tied.

–{Not happening.}– Duke's thought – speak sounded very different – lower, growlier.

–{Duke? Is that you?}–

–{Why not? I mean, it's my thought-speak, right? I can do what I like with it!}–

I tried it, reimagining myself as a higher, silkier voiced person.–{Do I sound different?}–

–{Nope.}–

–{Hmm. Guess it only works for you, then.}–

–{Eh, maybe you're a defect.}–

–{Duuuuuke…}– I groaned, and Duke swapped back to his growly voice.

–{Alright, Yeerk. Get out of his head.}–

"Never!" Marik yelled.

–{We don't have all day! Do it!}–

Marik's face was twisted into a cruel sneer. "What, so you can just step on me? Make me a deal, Andalite. Demands will get you nowhere."

–{I figured you'd say that. }–Duke swapped back to his normal voice.–{Tristan, listen very carefully to me. Your life could depend on not stuffing this up…}– He explained, and I would have facepalmed at the sheer awfulness of it… if I'd had palms.

–{Duke, that is quite simply the worst plan I ever heard of. }–I thought-growled.

–{Hey! I'm a genius!}– Then, in his other voice,–{How about this? I will allow you to enter the head of my colleague here. You will have an Andalite body to do with as you wish – why, you'd have enough power to rival Visser Three himself!}– he coaxed.

Marik – or rather, the Yeerk controlling Marik – frowned in confusion."Why would you do that?"

–{My colleague has seen many things that should not be seen – it has driven him to the edge of madness. He wishes to give his body to the Yeerks now, and I must obey his wishes…}–

Marik nodded – evidently Duke had played his role well. "If he so likes… Get him to tilt his ear towards mine."

Duke made a big show of nudging me into position.–{On the count of three, twist away from him. OK? One…}–

In the corner of my vision, I saw something slimy in Marik's ear.

–{Two…}– The Yeerk was halfway out. I felt it touch the edge of my ear.

–{Three!}–

I ripped my head away from Marik's, shaking like mad. The Yeerk fell out of my ear, clinging to Marik's neck as it struggled to get back into its host. Duke was on it in a second, claws ripping the Yeerk off, then shredding the slug.

Marik's body flopped in relief. "Oh, thank Ra… Thank you, whoever you are."

I glanced at Duke.–{Should we tell him that it's us?}–

–{No. Wait for Yugi to get back. He'll know what to do.}–

Marik looked at Duke. "You're the leader, then?"

–{Actually, I'm not. There are many of us.}–

The Egyptian nodded. "Why don't you demorph?"

–{If another Yeerk came in here…}– Duke broke off, and Marik nodded in understanding.

"Of course."

–{How were you infested? We need to know all we can about the situation here on Earth, so that–}–Duke began, but Marik cut him off with impeccable logic.

"Wait. If you're a survivor from the ship, how would you know that?"

The cat blinked. –{Know what?}–

"That this place is called Earth!"

–{That is what Visser Three called this planet}–, Duke countered smoothly.

"How come your friend never talks?" he pestered. "There were some teenagers at the crash site, weren't there? Visser Three thought he saw a couple, but we weren't sure… Hey, what if that dog's one of–"

–{That is none of your business.}– Duke turned to walk away.–{If you won't answer our questions, we may as well leave.}–

Marik grunted and sat up, straining against his bonds. "Wait, wait! I'll answer your questions! I'm indebted to you people – you should at least let me pay it off."

Duke turned back.–{Alright. Start talking.}–

Over the course of the next half hour, we learnt all sorts of useful information. Like the fact that _The Sharing_ was a front for the Yeerks, and that Yugi's grandfather, Anzu and my parents had all been infested. Marik told us the locations of the entrances to the Yeerk Pools – places where Yeerks would come out of their hosts to feed on Kandora Rays. They had to feed every three days – or they would starve. "Surely you wouldn't have taken the sort of risk you did if you'd known that", the Egyptian pointed out.

–{We did know that. We're just in a hurry, and we didn't want you to go through the hell of waiting it out while the Yeerk screamed in your head!}– Duke protested.

Marik raised an eyebrow. "Say what you like – I don't think you're really Andalites at all. In fact, my friend Yugi would have been heading home through that construction site the night the spaceship landed. He was going to the movies… With friends…" I could practically see the gears turning in his head.

–{He's worked it out!}– I groaned privately.

–{Not yet, he hasn't!}– Duke shot back.

–{He's very close to it, though…}–

The Egyptian gazed at the cat thoughtfully."Hmm… You can't be Yugi – I'd know him anywhere. So… Who might have been with him? You can't be Rishid, not polite enough. Not Seto, either – not arrogant enough…"

–{Why would he think _Kaiba's _Yugi's friend?}– I asked Duke privately.

–{Kaiba stalks Yugi all the time. Apparently, that qualifies.}–

Then, to Marik:–{I don't know what you're on about!}–

"Ooh, I got it! You'd be in Yugi's little group, the one he always runs around with – that narrows things down. So, let me see… Anzu's a Controller, so you couldn't be her. You're definitely not Joey or Tristan – you're too cunning. They'd have never have come up with that sort of plan to get the Yeerk out of my head. And you're not Ryo – he'd be nervous, scared of me. Yami is self-righteous, you're not - and if it was Bakura… well, he'd be way more psycho than you are. You can't be Serenity – not gentle enough – or Mai, because she'd be winding me up... So, that leaves me with just one person now, doesn't it? Even though your voice isn't his, you'd have to be Duke Devlin."

–{He's got you. Admit it.}–

Duke tried one last time.–{You're obviously out of your mind, but that is to be expected – having a Yeerk in your brain is a traumatic experience. So, if I'm this Devlin guy you're going on about, who's he?}– Duke nodded to me.

Marik snorted. "One, I'm perfectly sane, and you know it. Two, call him Duke, not Devlin. And three, the dog was playing with you before. You were chasing him – and I know only one person who Duke would ever do that sort of thing with. So… Hey, Tristan. Wassup?" The teen lay back as best the ropes would allow him to, smiling smugly to himself, and I blinked in surprise – he'd nailed it again!

–{We should tell him.}–I pleaded.

–{All right, I get it!}– Then, in his normal voice: –{Yeah, I'm Duke, and he's Tristan. We–}–

"Touched a blue box?"

–{Yeah. How'd you– }–

"Know? Let's just say that my Yeerk was a very senior one."

Yugi's thought-speak reached us.–{Duke? Tristan? How are you going back there?}–

I decided to answer, since Duke still looked a bit stunned.–{We got the Yeerk out of her head, and in return he basically worked out exactly who we were. Duke isn't happy.}–

–{And I was altering my voice, too! Like this!}– Duke demonstrated on the last two words.

Yugi sounded startled.–{I didn't know we could do that… Does my voice sound any different?}– he added.

–{No. It looks like we can't do that – I'd say Duke's the only one who can.}–

–{How did Marik guess it was Duke, if he sounded like that?}– Yugi wondered.

–{He remembered that you were going to the movies, and would have cut through the construction site the night the spaceship crashed. Marik then remembered that there'd been five teenagers at the construction site, and that you'd have been with friends when you'd been going home. He deduced it was Duke from there.}–

Yugi paused, and I guessed he was relaying this to the others.–{We're nearly there – give us a few minutes. Demorph – we're going to have to make him one of ours, or the Yeerks will get him. Joey's gone to get the box from where he hid it.}–

Duke was incredulous.–{_Joey _had the box? That idiot?}–

Yugi ignored the insult.–{Yeah, he grabbed it before he ran, and I figured it'd be safest with him… You know, Marik's not going to be able to go home, now he's found out who we are. They'll just re-infest him.}–

I blinked. –{Then… What are we going to do?}–

–{Don't worry. I've got a plan. Now, demorph – we'll be with you shortly.}–

"Hey! I'd like to know what's going on!" Marik growled.

I sighed. –{Marik, I'd look away if I was you. Yugi's on his way – we'll demorph now.}–

"Yugi? I might have known…"

My tail was already shrinking into my spine, and I promptly closed my eyes. Three minutes later, I opened my eyes, now human. Marik looked horrified.

"That was… Great Ra, that was disgusting!" he managed at last.

I shrugged. "Trust me, I know."

Marik looked thoughtful. "I can't go home now, can I? They'll just reinfest me, and then they'll know all about you…"

"Yugi's got some sort of plan, apparently." Duke snorted. "I guess we'll just have to wait and see what master plan our brilliant and fearless leader has come up with…"


	5. Ch 4: A Cunning Plan

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, Animorphs, or anything else that doesn't belong to me. I only own this story.  
****Chapter Four: A Cunning Plan**

**TRISTAN  
**Duke and I headed to the front section of the warehouse to wait for the others, leaving Marik behind. It wasn't long before a Peregrine Falcon and a Snowy Owl flew in – which were Yugi and Ryo three minutes later.

"Well done, you two!" Yugi beamed, as a Golden Retriever trotted in behind them, a blue cube in its mouth, and melted, reforming into Joey. The blonde picked up the cube, tossing it in the air.

"So, Yug'. What's da plan?"

"Well, we're going to get Marik to morph into an animal of his choice, for two hours – so he'll be trapped in that form. Then we get him to touch the box again. As a human, he'll disappear, and no-one will find him. Simple."

"What about his human form? He'll lose that…" Duke growled.

Yugi shook his head. "No, he won't. See, one of us acquires Marik without him realizing, then morphs into him. All he has to do is touch that person while they're morphed as him, and bam, he's got his human form back… for two hours at a time, anyway. Who's with me?"

Joey raised his hand instantly, loyal as ever. Duke shrugged. "I guess it's the only way – and he won't be reinfested, so he'll be safe. And more importantly, so will we." He raised his hand.

Ryo nodded. "He'll be safe. If he was reinfested…. Well, I wouldn't want that happening to anyone, ever. And if he can still be human…" His hand went up.

I agreed with both of them. "Guess there's no other way around it, though I can't say he's going to be happy…" I raised my hand, and Yugi looked pleased.

"Let's explain it to him, then!"

"Uh, are you sure that's a good idea?" Duke wondered. "I don't know about you, but I definitely wouldn't want to be trapped as an animal for the rest of my life. I'd refuse point-blank."

"Duke's got a point." I admitted. "Maybe we should get him to pick a really, really good morph, then trick him into staying in it until he's trapped…"

Ryo looked pretty uncomfortable with that idea. "That's horrible! We can't do that!"

"It's no worse than being infested again!" Yugi growled, switching to Yami as he said it. "_And if Marik gets reinfested, then the Yeerks will know who we are, and it'll be all over!_"

"But… We could at least tell him that beforehand!" Ryo protested, but Joey shook his head.

"No, we can't do dat… If'n we did, he'd refuse to morph, an' den where would we be?"

Duke shrugged. "Six feet under, I'd imagine, or helping the Yeerks to–"

"Rhetorical question!"

Yami sighed, and I could see he was losing patience with us. "_Ryo, if you want you can just acquire Marik. I understand if you don't want to–_"

"Look, it's _cruel_!" Ryo protested.

"_Oh, so you have a better idea?_" There was a dangerous edge to Yami's voice that made us all take a step back, Ryo taking two and lowering his gaze.

"N-no, Yami. W-whatever you say."

Yami kept going, now in full rant mode. "_Oh, so maybe we should kill him? Would that be nicer, Ryo? Easier, perhaps? How about we throw Marik into a prison and leave him there – no-one would be able to hurt him then! Well?_"

"N-no!"

I stepped between them, defending Ryo. "Yami, leave him alone. Some of us actually have feelings!"

Yami glared at me for a moment, amethyst eyes meeting brown… then he backed down. "_Sorry, Ryo_" he muttered, and turned away for a few seconds.

"We may as well do it." His voice was hollow and higher – he'd switched back to Yugi. He explained the plan in more detail, and Ryo didn't answer him when he asked who agreed with it, just turned and went into the back part of the warehouse, us following in silence. He went around behind Marik, acquiring the Egyptian while he untied Joey's knots. I could tell when he'd done it, because for a moment Marik seemed to zone out, then blinked.

"Hmm? I must be tired…" He saw us watching, and smiled. "I knew you'd be involved in this, Yugi! Right in the centre of trouble, as always."

None of us said anything. We all knew what was going to happen, and none of us wanted to do it.

_It's the only way…_

Marik frowned. "What's wrong?"

Joey offered him the blue box, refusing to meet his gaze. "Touch it."

"The Escafil Device? So… You're giving me the ability to morph?" He shrugged and placed his hand on the box, giggling like a small child. "It tickles!"

"It does that." I commented, and Yugi gave me a look that said _shhh. _Duke beckoned for Marik to follow him, and I heard a car engine start up outside a few seconds later.

"He'll find him an animal. And then…" Yugi broke off.

Joey pulled a dog crate out of the warehouse, while I finished Yugi's sentence for him. "Duke gets Marik to change into whatever, and we trap him in the dog crate."

"Good. Now we morph, and we wait."

Silence followed – after a moment, I looked over at the others to see if anyone disagreed, and found they were already morphing. Joey's body was lengthening, and Yugi's eyes had gone from amethyst to a deep brown. Ryo was rapidly sprouting white feathers, his eyes tightly closed as he muttered nervously under his breath. I shrugged, and went German Shepherd.

* * *

**MARIK  
**"Nice car", I commented with a yawn as we drove through the night, and Duke shrugged a mute response. I had my first morph now – my pet Pharaoh Hound, Kudos. Rishid had bought him for me as a present to try and cheer me up after Battle City – but I couldn't really enjoy the puppy.

You know, since the person who he thought was me wasn't actually me, but the slug in my head – Anzu had seen to it that I be taken right after the tournament finished.  
I tried to clear my mind a bit. "So, where are we going?"

The raven–haired teen just shrugged, his eyes on the road. "Somewhere quiet, I guess. We don't need you morphing in the middle of the city."

I laughed. "That would be about right, wouldn't it?"

Duke pulled the car over, then looked at me for a long while before he opened the door. "Here should do."

"Hey, what's up with you?", I grumbled, jumping out of the car myself and following the boy down a dark alleyway.

"Just… Tired, that's all. I mean, I've been morphing all day – it really drains you after a bit. Besides, business was busy this morning."

"Ah."

"So, morphing." Duke leaned against the wall. "First, you focus on the animal – like when you were acquiring your dog."

"Eh? 'Dog'?"

The teen looked at me like I was mad. "Yeah. Dog."

"Oh, you mean Kudos, right? He's so intelligent, he's _hardly _an ordinary dog."

Duke rolled his eyes. "Yeah, I'm talking about Kudos. Focus on him again, and you'll become him." He smiled at me – the first smile I'd seen all night, a flash of the old, crafty Duke I knew.

"Tell you what – I'll morph cat, and we can have a little fun together. Sound good?"

"Sure." While Duke kicked off his shoes, I gathered my focus – I was already barefoot and in tight clothing.

Little did I know that this was the last time I'd ever be a full human.

_Right. Dog. Kudos._

My stomach rumbled, and I winced – trust my gut to ruin the moment. It wasn't until it growled again and there were a series of loud cracks that I realized what was going on – my stomach was twisting, sinking further back into my body. I felt a thrill of excitement – I'd heard so much from my Yeerk about the morphing ability, and now I was about to experience it. I grinned, feeling my suddenly elongated canine teeth digging into my lower lip.

_This should be fun._

* * *

**TRISTAN**

Twenty minutes later, Duke's voice came into our heads.–{Okay, guys. Marik's morphed his pet Pharaoh Hound – he loves those dogs, reckons they look like jackals or something. He's having a fine time here, chasing rats and the suchlike. We're about a block north from the warehouse.}–

Yugi, now a tall, nondescript man in dirty clothes, who we hoped would pass as a 'dog catcher', was the one who replied – in thought–speak, since he was technically in morph. –{Good. Tristan, Joey, Ryo. You know what you have to do.}– With that, he picked up the dog crate, and headed out the door.

Two dogs and an owl looked awkwardly at each other, each waiting for someone else to move first. I gave Joey a look that said _I don't want to do this!_, but he wouldn't meet my gaze, so I held my head high, and trotted out into the night.

Joey and I were to attack Marik, pretending to be mongrels. The Retriever would take Marik from the front, then I'd rush him from the back – I had to be careful not to be seen by Marik, in case he recognized me. Duke would pretend to run away, then demorph and head back to the warehouse to wait. We'd bite him a few times, nothing too serious, then Yugi would rush in, making us flee back to the warehouse. He had the hardest job – to pick up Marik and stick him in the dog crate, and leave him in an abandoned house while he went to 'get the keys to his van'. Next, we'd come and 'rescue' him… after two hours of his time had been wasted, of course. Ryo would simply keep an eye on him, just to make sure that he didn't get away.

I ripped out a few chunks of Joey's fur, waited while he did the same to me. Then we both rolled in a puddle, just to make us look a bit more like alley dogs. –{Awright, let's go.}–

We slunk down dark alleyways, watching for Marik, until we found a Pharaoh Hound – a reddish brown dog with absurdly long legs, and the pointiest, largest ears I'd ever seen – and a familiar black cat, attempting to play tug of war with the dog. Joey moved silently to the other end of the alleyway, before stepping out with a low, threatening growl.

–{Duke, it's us}–, I told the cat, as it automatically fluffed up in fear.

–{Good. I was wondering about that, the way Joey's growling definitely says otherwise…}–

Joey lunged, and Marik turned to flee – but then I was there, grabbing his silly long neck in my jaws and tossing him back to the Golden Retriever, who bent over the smaller dog, snarling ferociously. Duke tried to jump on Joey, claws out, but I pounced, grabbing the cat and shaking like mad. By chance, the black fur bundle got me a good slash on the nose, and I dropped him with a yelp of surprise. He promptly fled, while Joey continued to bully Marik into submission.

"HEY!" A tall, nondescript man, his clothes filthy – Yugi in morph – came running around the corner. I ran into the shadows, while he kicked Joey off Marik, stuffing the whimpering, disorientated Pharaoh Hound into the dog crate. "Hey, baby. You look like someone's lost pet. Better get you to the pound, eh?"

–{Help! Help! Yugi, Joey, Tristan! Duke! Ryo! Help! Someone, help me!}– Marik wailed.

–{Sorry, Marik.}– I whispered - very quietly, so no-one would hear.–{It's for your own good.}–

–{C'mon, Tris'. Let's head back to da warehous'.}– Joey was saying, and I followed him dumbly, ignoring Marik's wails in my head. Thanks to me, Marik would be stuck as a dog for the rest of his life – even if the morphing cube_ did_ work a second time on him, Marik would still have to become a dog every two hours.

–{Please, no! Someone, anyone! Help! I don't wanna be a pound dog!}– Marik's crying and pleading went on and on, and I was relieved when Yugi came to take me and Duke to Kaiba's personal zoo, if only because the Egyptian's wails eventually faded as we got further away…

* * *

Another half an hour, and we were flying over the exhibits.

–{So, what did you have in mind?}– Yugi asked, and I tilted my head.

–{Whatever's easiest for me to acquire, I guess… Personally though, I'd like a wolf morph. They seem to be quite sturdy, enduring things… What did you guys get?}–

–{Joey acquired a rhino – you should have seen him, he was shaking the entire time. Ryo managed to get a Komodo Dragon morph – don't ask me how he did it without getting eaten – and I chose a grizzly bear. Really, it's a matter of personal preference more than anything else… What about you, Duke?}–

Duke – a golden eagle, he had acquired it on a whim – considered it. –{I think a cougar morph would be quite good. Those things are born killing machines.}–

–{Let's hope it doesn't kill _you_ while you're trying to acquire it, then.}–I pointed out.

Yugi thought – giggled at that.–{Relax. The only aggressive animals I saw there were the Komodo Dragons – the others are all tame.}–

–{Exactly _how _many animals did you see?}–, Duke growled.

–{Three?}–

Duke laughed harshly. –{No wonder you thought they were all tame, then. The bears in there are all circus trained, and rhinos aren't too well known for being vicious.}–

I landed in one corner of the wolf exhibit, and demorphed as quickly as I could.  
_All right. I need to get in there, acquire the wolf, then get out as fast as possible._

Three minutes later, and I was a human in a wolf exhibit. Not really feeling comfortable, either – these wolves could be very aggressive, for all I knew. Walking into a wolf exhibit with no weapons or shields wasn't something one did normally, for good reason. I crouched down, out of sight of the guards, as I crawled on all fours to where I assumed the wolves would be sleeping – in a nice, dark cave at one end of the exhibit. Peering in, to find…

Nothing.

_Where were the wolves?_

–{Tristan, look out!}– Yugi called down, just as a cold, wet nose prodded me in the backside.

Very slowly, I turned, to find the alpha wolf calmly gazing down at me. He was the lord of his domain, and he considered me carefully with a strange sort of intelligence. The amber eyes followed my hand as I carefully reached out to touch him, regarding it with amusement. This guy could easily bite my whole arm off – we both knew that.

"Um… Good boy…" My fingers brushed the silver fur, and I immediately focused on the wolf. I though hard about his strength, how similar he was to the dog in looks, and I desperately wanted him – mostly to stop myself from getting eaten. While he was zoned out, I started morphing kestrel.

_Sniff. Sniff._ The wolf snapped out of his trance and bent over me, examining this strange creature who was now rapidly shrinking, becoming a bird. I remained as still as I could, trying to ignore the canine; unfortunately, it wasn't ignoring me. Its lip curled in a snarl, showing very big teeth. "Rrrrrr…"

My mouth and nose ran together, bulged out into a beak, my arms becoming wings as I continued to shrink. The growls became louder, and suddenly they were coming from all sides. I looked up, now a full kestrel, and saw not one, not two, but _five_ wolves watching me. I flapped my wings, trying to get airborne – and one of them lunged at me!

SWISHED

Yugi sailed past the wolf, who twisted in mid air to get away from the falcon's flashing talons – just enough time for me to go speeding past it. I flew low over the ground, trying desperately to fly higher, with a pack of five wolves chasing me.

–{Um, Yugi? I don't think all the animals were tame.}–

–{Agreed.}–

Above us, on the walkway, Kaiba's guards had seen me. "What's that?"

"Some sort of kestrel… At night?"

"Andalite!"

BANG!

"Hey, hold your fire! I never gave the order–"

"All Andalites must die!"

"Say what?"

–{Tristan, Yugi, what's going on?}– Duke yelled.

–{Well, Tristan's got a pack of wolves on his tail, and Kaiba's guards are shooting at him. I'd suggest you morph and get out of the cougar exhibit…}–Yugi thought-said, as calmly as he could given the circumstances.

–{Already am.}–

Bullets whizzed past me as I fled the wolves, adding further to the chaos. One wolf took a few inches off my tail feathers as I caught a lucky current of warm air and rose high into the air, just barely dodging the tranquilizer dart one of Kaiba's guards fired at me. A golden eagle and a peregrine falcon met me in midair, and the three of us flew back to the warehouse without another word.

**LINEBREAK**

We flew into the warehouse, to find Ryo and Joey there, a Pharaoh Hound beside them, with one delicate red-brown paw on the blue box.

–{ You know, it doesn't seem to be tickling.}– I should have worked it out right away, but then Yugi landed, disrupting my thoughts.

–{You can tell Marik now, Joey. Ryo, morph Marik. Everyone else, demorph.}–

–{What the FRIG?}– Marik roared, once Joey had explained that it had all been a set up.

–{I mean, honestly! What'd you do that for? You've wrecked my tan, forever! I'll never have a sexylicious body again!}–

"Actually… We considered that."

–{You did?}– Hopeful, black dog eyes bored into Joey's honey brown ones.

"Yeah. Y'see, Ryo acquired you…"

Ryo awkwardly stepped forwards, now looking exactly like Marik, in Marik's already tight clothing. He crouched to the dog's level. "Here. Acquire me – just get it over with! This mind of yours keeps wanting to do the silliest, most reckless things…"

The dog nodded, and placed a paw on Ryo's shoulder. Nothing happened. Marik blinked. "I thought he was supposed to go into a trance…"

Ryo glanced at Yugi. "A–Any idea w–w–what's… um, going on?"

"Nope. Maybe the trance just doesn't work on humans."

"B–but… M–Marik zoned out when I acquired _him_…" Ryo pointed out.

Yugi sighed. "Marik, concentrate on being human."

The dog nodded… and nothing happened. Ryo shifted back into his normal form, biting his lip in anxiety.

Marik looked at each of us in turn.–{You could have told me.}–

"We were worried you wouldn't morph if you knew! Besides, the plan was that you'd get your human form back!" Yugi growled.

Marik's ears went straight back, a low rumble rising in his throat. –{Well, that obviously didn't work!}–

Joey stepped in front of Yugi, defending him. "We didn't know, ya moron!"

–{Then why the frig did you do it? I'm going to be a dog FOREVER nowww!}–

"Mayb' not. Mayb' ya can still morph, jus' not inta other people's morphs."

–{Joey, the box didn't light up or tickle or anything the second time! Get your head screwed on right!}–

The blonde went to sulk in a corner, and Yugi sighed. "We had better head home…"  
Marik dropped to the floor in rebellion.–{NEVER! We're staying until we work out how to get me back! }– And then a scream went straight through my brain, a long, despairing wail; and the dog's fur stood on end. Marik glared at us, and something told me it wasn't him, even before he spoke in our heads.

–{_Hey, kiddies. Remember me?_}–

Yami Marik. Marik's split personality, created from the pains he'd felt as a small child. Joey seemed to be swearing in the corner, then came out of his corner so everyone could actually hear him cursing.

–{_Ah, I see you do. Now, how did I-?_}– Yami Marik's voice trailed off as he realized what he'd become. Then, he sighed. –{_Yugi, I thought we'd settled this._}–

Yugi shook his head. "It wasn't a Shadow Game, if that's what you were thinking–"

Yami Marik just shrugged… then launched himself like a furry torpedo at Yugi. Before any of us could intervene, he'd torn part of the teen's throat out-

Suddenly, everything went perfectly quiet outside, and the gory tableu before me, the onlookers, the clock on the wall… it all froze. Before I could react, everything had gone black.

"Joey? Ryo? Duke? Yugi?" I called, and was relieved when, one by one, they answered. Marik simply voiced everyone's thoughts: "What the heck is going on?"

THAT WILL BE ANSWERED.

The voice came from everywhere, and from nowhere. It was around us, yet inside us… It confused me.

THE TIMELINE HAS BEEN DISRUPTED.

Suddenly, I was sitting in a movie theatre with the others. Marik sat, human, on my left, a struggling Pharaoh Hound trapped in a crate at his feet. He blinked. "What the he– I'm _me?_"

–{_LET ME OUT!_}– ,the dog snarled, banging its head against the bars.

"_Yugi?_"

"Yami?" I turned, to find on my right were not another four people, but another_ six_. Yugi and Yami had been separated, as had Ryo and Bakura – each of them had their own chair, and all of them were looking thoroughly confused.

FOR YOUR VIEWING PLEASURE, I HAVE SEPARATED ALL HOSTS FROM THEIR SPIRITS.

Bakura scowled. _"Not necessary."_

DO NOT QUESTION ME, SPIRIT.

The pale teen went to snarl an angry reply, but no words came out of his mouth. The screen lit up in front of us, and we sat quietly, watching as a clearly psycho dog – Yami Marik – killed Yugi. We watched as he recovered the Millennium Rod, stole the Millennium Puzzle from Yugi's body, then proceeded to destroy half the world, with Bakura taking care of the other half.

THE YEERK EMPIRE WOULD BE DESTROYED COMPLETELY, BUT SO WOULD YOU AND MY OTHER PIECES… IT WOULD BE A STALEMATE. MY ENEMY AGREES THAT WE CANNOT ALLOW YAMI MARIK TO DO THAT. THEREFORE… A slight pause, and suddenly the dog vanished with a yelp of surprise, Marik dissolving into smoke a moment later.

"What did you do?" I yelled, unable to move.

I HAVE QUELLED YAMI MARIK, FOR NOW. HE MAY RETURN LATER, HOWEVER HE WILL NOT BE ALLOWED TO INTERFERE WITH THE TIMELINE LIKE THAT. IN ADDITION, MARIK HAS BEEN GRANTED THE MORPHING POWER, AND HAS ACQUIRED HIS HUMAN FORM – HAD HE NOT, THE TIMELINE WOULD HAVE COLLAPSED. HOWEVER, HE WILL HAVE TO RETURN TO HIS DOG FORM EVERY TWO HOURS. MY ENEMY DEMANDS THIS.

Duke blinked. "Who are you?"

I AM THE ELLIMIST. THAT IS ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW.

And the world went black once again.

* * *

**MARIK**  
I wasn't in that creepy theatre anymore; that was something, at least. Nope – there was fresh grass under my now chubby paws, clear blue sky above me. Looking over my shoulder, I could see that I was now a eight–week old puppy version of Kudos.

_Great, now I really am useless... _

A large tennis ball rolled to a halt beside me, and I lay down, nudging it miserably with my nose.

"Here, Kudos!"

My ears pricked up.

_That was..! _

A very familiar, very attractive blonde Egyptian came strolling towards me. "Come on, where's your ball?"

I felt sick – that was _me_ walking over there. That was me, just a few days after Battle City. Odion had bought me this dog, trying to cheer me up – but it wasn't like I _could_ be cheered up. After all, the Yeerk wrapped around my brain was controlling all my movements…

ACQUIRE HIM.

–{Acquire? But I'm trapped in mo–}–

I GAVE YOU BACK THE MORPHING POWER. JUST THIS ONCE.

I picked up the ball, and trotted over to my past self, feeling very odd as he patted my head. "See, Odion? He's smart, I told you so!" I rolled onto my back, concentrating on him as soon he began to rub my belly with a cry of delight. To my delight, he actually paused mid–stroke, eyes going blank for a few seconds. Odion came rushing over, just as he shook his head and I rolled to my paws.

"Are you all right, Master Marik?"

"Yes, yes. I'm fine… Kudos, fetch!" The ball sailed through the air, I raced after it automatically and–

Darkness.

* * *

**TRISTAN**

I was back in the warehouse, rubbing my eyes. Marik turned those hopeful eyes to each of us in turn. –{Does anyone know what just happened then?}–

Duke shrugged. "Nope, but at least you can morph human. That's something, right?"

–{So… I'm part of the team? We kick Yeerk butt?}–

Joey gave him the thumbs-up. "Yup."

Marik grinned as best as his dog face would allow. –{Now…Who wants to adopt a dog?}–

I couldn't help it – Marik just looked so… so… cute as a dog. Besides, I missed my old dog Blankey – I wanted a dog, and Marik hopefully wouldn't be any trouble. And so, I stepped forwards. "I'll keep you, providing you don't behave too badly on the leash."

"Well, that settles that little problem…" Yugi grinned.

–{By the way, could I have a bird morph? I'd like that. And a battle morph. I'll be sorta… useless otherwise.}–

"Done, but we won't be able to get you anywhere near Kaiba's zoo like that. You'll have to borrow someone's morphs." Yugi pointed out.

"I don't… think that's going to work." Ryo frowned. "When the Yeerks came, I stayed a few seconds longer than I should have. The Andalite… He put an awful lot of things into my head. I was too scared to really make sense of it at the time… But I just remembered some more of it when I saw the Ellimist. One of those things is that we can't morph people's morphs." Duke gave him an odd look, but I seemed to be the only one who noticed it.

Marik grunted. –{Well, that puts an end to that idea.}–

"I can get you an eagle – my company sponsored that raptor show in town. The birds are roosting at my place, and the show isn't on tomorrow – you could acquire one then" Duke volunteered.

The dog looked at us.–{So, now what?}–

In the uncomfortable silence which followed this question, Yugi shrugged."Well… We go home."

–{Then what?}–

Duke raised one eyebrow. "What do you mean, 'then what'?"

–{Well, when are we going to attack the Yeerk Pool?}– I could hear the malice in his thought-speak, and realized how much Marik must want revenge on those who had stolen his body.

"We'll need to infiltrate the Sharing first. My grandpa will know when the next meeting will be held – we can listen in." Yugi sighed, and I felt bad for him. His granddad was all he'd ever really had, and now… How long had the Yeerk in his granddad's head been in control?

Joey interrupted my gloomy thoughts. "Well, den. Let's head home, den Yug' gets the date of da meetin', then we meet up at Tris's. Howzat?"

We all went our separate ways, with the exception of Marik, who accompanied me on the way home.

–{Oooh, a kebob shop. Triiisstan, could we pleeeaasseee get a kebob?}– he whined, for the umpteenth time in ten minutes. (1)

"Fine, fine!" I muttered, tying him up outside the shop and buying six, three for each of us – I was hungry myself.

"By the way, it's pronounced 'kebab', not 'kebob'!" I added quietly, scraping the meat and vegetables off the sticks and onto a paper napkin for him.

–{Yay! Thanks, Tristan! Kebobs!}– Marik crowed. He shoveled the whole lot down at incredible speed, and wouldn't stop pleading for a piece of one of mine the entire way home as I ate.

–{Hey, can I sleep in a bed?}– he asked, as I stepped through the door.

"No! You can sleep on the end of mine though", I added quickly, as his ears automatically flattened at the sound of the "n-word".

I climbed into bed, petted Marik as he lay dozing on the end of it, then fell asleep, trying not to think about raiding the Yeerk Pool.

1. Out Of Character Marik is OOC! There was actually a reason for making Marik more childish, however.  
In the Animorphs canon, Tobias was shown to become emotionless as a result of being trapped in his bird form. If you look at Marik's introduction, he is actually a cunning, manipulative, brat – it's not until he's a dog that he begins to really overreact. As a dog, the dog instincts affect Marik heavily, making him giddy… and so he does very much OOC things.


	6. Ch 5: A Change In Plans

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, Animorphs, or anything else that doesn't belong to me. I only own this story.  
****Chapter Five: Raid**  
–{Triiiiisssstan… Helloooo. Marik here.}–  
"Whaa...?"  
–{Can I go for a walk? Can I? Can I?}–  
Something heavy pressed down on my chest, as I tried to roll over. Opening my eyes, I found I was looking straight into the Pharaoh Hound's black ones. "Marik, I don 't think it's even five in the morning yet…" I groaned.  
–{But it might be. Do you have a ball? A chew toy?}–  
I just sighed, and closed my eyes again.

–{Hey! Wake up!}– Marik started licking my face, and I promptly threw him off with a yell, sitting up in bed.  
"Sheesh, Marik… I'm not going to be allowed to go back to sleep, am I?"  
–{Nope. Walk?}–  
I yawned and stretched. "Could you make me a coffee first?"  
The dog nodded, and trotted out. I sighed. Marik was going to be more of a handful than I'd expected…

Ten minutes later, a very much tanned Egyptian swaggered in with my coffee. "One coffee as ordered, Your Highness."

I gratefully accepted it, and took a sip. The teen had made it exactly the way I liked it – not too much sugar, not too little, exactly the right amount of milk. "Thanks."  
"No problem!" he beamed, and promptly shifted back into a dog, while I gulped my coffee down.  
–{Now, about that walk…}–  
"You're on." I grabbed an old lead and collar from the shelf next to my bed, and put the collar around Marik's neck. He fidgeted uncomfortably, scratching at the collar while I tried to get the lead on.  
"Sorry about that, but you need to be leashed when you're in the street. The rangers'll kill me otherwise… I'll let you off when we get to the park."  
Then I threw on my jacket – I'd slept in my clothes – grabbed the ball and ball thrower, and headed out the door.  
He was pretty hyper on the way there, sniffing something interesting here, investigating a puddle there, but soon as we got to the park and I let him off the leash, Marik went bananas. The dog streaked across the dew-covered grass in a reddish-brown blur, and I was worried I might lose him.  
I whistled. "Jackal, heel!"  
Marik came trotting back.–{Jackal?}–  
"It was all I could think of, okay?" I muttered, stroking his coat.  
–{Why don't you just call me Marik? Saves confusion.}–  
"Fair enough." I threw the ball, and Marik promptly charged after it, his dainty paws slipping on the wet grass.  
–{Wheeee!}– he yelled in my head, skidding and rolling over as he lunged for the ball.  
"That's an interesting looking dog. Is he yours?"  
I turned to find Anzu watching me intently, a small, fluffy, white dog at her side. I tried not to think about the Yeerk that was controlling her.  
"Oh, hi, Anzu. Yeah, he's mine."  
Marik came running back to me, and Anzu petted him. "What's his name?"  
"Marik, but sometimes I call him Jackal, because he's so naughty."  
"He looks like a great big softy to me" she giggled, fondling Marik's ears. "When you'd get him?"  
"Oh, a few months ago", I lied through my teeth. "Actually, it was just after you left for that dance tour around America that I got him."  
She smiled as Marik rolled over for her, hoping for a tummy rub.  
"Oh, he's so sweet! Why'd you call him Marik? Seems like a strange choice of name, naming him after someone who put you through all that…"  
"Well, he's a pure bred Pharaoh Hound – straight from Egypt, so I figured the name would fit. I mostly did it to piss Marik off, though."  
She laughed, and all I could think about was the real Anzu, trapped by the Yeerk…  
"Hey, Tristan… I was wondering if you'd like to come to one of the meetings for The Sharing – it's on this afternoon. We're celebrating our tenth anniversary, and it's going to be a great afternoon. No commitments or anything – just a barbecue on the beach, beach games, that sort of thing. We're organizing fireworks, and live music, too. It's going to be a hot day, so I thought maybe you'd like to go – the food's all free…"  
I did my very best to appear relaxed at the mention of The Sharing. "Yeah, sure I'll come. I'll tell the others, too – can you imagine Joey's face if he thought I'd be getting free food, and he wasn't?"

She laughed again. "I'll see you there, then. It's the beach near Domino Pier. It starts at midday, and it'll be going until midnight, when we release the fireworks. Speaking of which… You know, I heard that there were some kids being stupid with a bunch of fireworks in that old construction site the other day. You get around on the streets a fair bit… I was wondering if you'd know anything about it."

I looked her in the eye, lying through my smile. "Sorry, I didn't know anything about it until you just told me."  
"Oh, OK then. Let me know if you do hear anything, though. Come on, Miffy!"  
She walked off, and Marik rolled onto his front, staring up at me. –{_So that's their latest lie, huh?}–_  
"Well, at least we know when the meeting will be." I whispered, putting the leash back on. "Come on, Marik. Let's head home…"

Joey was waiting out the front of my house when I arrived. "Hey, Tris'. "  
"Yo, Joey! What's up?" I unlocked the front door, removing Marik's leash. Joey followed us in, closing the door behind him.  
"Well…"  
I raised an eyebrow. "If it's about the next Sharing meeting, I already know. Anzu told me all about it – it's at 1pm today."  
"No, s'not about that – Yug' already told me."  
–{_Then what **is** it?_}– Marik demanded, chewing on the little rope toy I'd bought him on the way back from the park.  
Joey sighed. "There's this video that's gone viral on Youtube… Could I borrow your computer?"  
"Yeah, sure."

A few clicks of the mouse, and Joey had brought the video up. White text on a blue background.  
"As you might already know, the mansion of the famous Kaiba brothers was broken into last night, and an unidentified individual was seen in the wolf enclosure. I am one of the guards, and I was fortunate enough to have a camera with me. I couldn't believe my eyes – a kestrel actually flew into the exhibit, and became a boy! I started filming him at that point…" I read.  
And there was a perfect video of me, turning into a kestrel and getting chased by the wolf pack.  
I took a deep breath. "Shit! If the Yeerks see that…"

The blonde sighed. "Dey'll hav' already seen it, but for all dey know at the moment, it could be a hoax. We need ta find this guy, whoever he is, before dey do – and we need dat footage…" Marik's ears pricked up, and he ran to the window.  
–{Tristan, the police just rocked up outside… I can hear them talking. They're Yeerks – and they want to arrest you!}–_  
_"Morph ta dog, quick!" Joey hissed, ripping his own jacket off as fast as he could, and opening the back door, ready for our escape. I didn't need to be told - fur was already sprouting all over my body. Marik stood in front of the door as we morphed, his weight holding it open – and outside, I heard footsteps coming up the driveway.  
I was morphing at record speed, my hands shriveling into paws, the tail coming out of my spine...  
DING DONG!  
They were at the door! I looked over at Joey – we were both about half-morphed, bizarre combinations of human and dog. Joey's morph was especially strange – he was a normal teenager, with just a little bit of fur on his legs, a dog tail swishing behind him, claws growing from human fingers… and a great shaggy dog head atop his human shoulders.  
My knees reversed direction and I fell over on to all fours with a _thump_, my sneakers falling off as my feet shrank, socks ripping as claws pushed their way out…  
Someone bashed on the door. "Police, open up!"  
My arms grew longer, the upper arm bulging, the lower arm becoming a stick. Slowly, slowly, the snout began to push out of my face, my ears getting large and furry…  
"Open up! It's the police! Open up, I say!"

Finally, it was done. I sprinted out the back door, Joey and Marik right behind – the Pharaoh Hound carrying his own leash in his mouth, so that maybe the police would think I'd gone out to walk him.  
–{Where to now? Yug's?}– Joey wondered, as we ran.  
–{Duke's. Yugi's granddad might be home, and then I wouldn't be able to demorph – he might recognize me from the video. At least with Duke, there's no chance of that happening…}– I replied.  
–{Sounds like a plan. Marik, do ya think ya could find Ryo for me? Send him to Duke's - I'll get Yug'.}–  
–{No problem!}–

We split up, Marik heading left, towards the flats, Joey running right, towards the shops. I ran straight ahead, looking for Duke's mansion, and after a little bit of searching, found it. I scrabbled on one of the massive double wooden doors, trying to get in.  
–{Duke! Duke! Let me in! I'm a dog!}–  
"Coming!" I heard Duke call, and he opened the door. He smiled when he saw me. "I guess you saw the video, then?"  
–{The friggin' police are after me now! What are we going to do?}–  
"Destroy the footage, of course." He closed the door behind me, and walked over to his laptop. "I have many talents, but one of the ones I'm less proud of is hacking. I've already got this guy's name and address – he's indeed one of Kaiba's guards. Lives in a flat close to the mansion."  
–{Guess we'll have to wait for the others before we can do anything…}–  
"Ah, yes…" Duke pulled out a rope toy. "You know, I reckon they'll take a little while to come. Fancy a little game?"  
We were well into the game of tug-of-war when the doorbell rang.  
DING DONG!

Duke opened the door to find a human Yugi and Ryo, accompanied by a Pharaoh Hound and a Golden Retriever. "Come in, come in. The lounge is just this way…"  
Joey and Marik resumed human forms and crashed on the couches with the others, while I remained a dog – just in case the police arrived at Duke's place.  
–{So… What are we going to do now?}– I wondered.  
Yugi considered. "I think our priority here is to destroy that footage. Replace it with something that would make the Yeerks think that it's a hoax…"  
"Like a longer piece of footage, showing how it was set up, with the actual clip in the middle?" Duke suggested.  
"You got it."  
Duke's eyes glittered, and I could tell that he'd had an idea. "I bugged all of Kaiba's cameras. I can make some footage that would 'unmask' it as a setup…"

"Good. So, here's the plan. There's a Sharing meeting on today. I'll be going to that – I told Gramps I would. Duke, you put together the hoax clip and get it onto a flash drive – Tristan, you stay here – we can't risk you being seen and captured. Joey, Ryo, Marik, you guys go home, get some rest. When Duke's got the clip together, you three will break into the guard's house and replace the video with the hoax version. Who's with me?"  
Joey's hand shot up, followed shortly by Ryo's, then Duke's. I raised a paw. Marik pouted. "When do we attack the Yeerk Pool?"  
Yugi sighed. "As soon as we've gotten Tristan out of this mess he's in, we'll attack the Yeerk Pool."

Marik considered this a moment, then raised his hand, too. "I'll do it then – just let me acquire a bird… Could we all meet as soon as we've finished the job? You know, to discuss how we're going to do it, make sure everyone's all right?"  
Yugi nodded. "I won't be able to come, but you guys may as well meet up back at Duke's place when you're done. I'll be along when I can get away – say, about five o'clock?"  
"Sounds good."

Duke promptly went back to working on his laptop, while Joey and Marik became canines once more. When they were done, Duke nodded to Marik. "Here. I'll take you out to acquire a bird."  
Five minutes later…–{My nose! It got my nose! Arrrgh!}–  
My sensitive ears picked up Duke's response."Sheesh, Marik! Of course it's got your nose! You stuck it in there instead of your paw, you idiot!"  
–{It wasn't my fault! I wanted to examine it closer!}–  
"Acquire it, and it'll let it go! "  
Muffled whimpers followed this, then:–{Duke, I think my nose's stuck.}–  
"WHAT?"  
–{And that bird's going to come out of its trance any minute now, right?}–

From the sound of things, the bird decided to come out of its trance right then and there. Several yelps filtered through the walls, there was a loud bang and a thump, and right after that I heard Marik 'yelling':  
–{That's the LAST time I ever go near a bird! Wait, get away from me! Duke, step back. Don't come anywhere near me with those! Not. One. Step! Oooh, no you don't! Don't you _dare!_}–

Sounds of struggling, before the duo padded into the room. Duke was carrying a roll of bandages, and Marik had a bandage on his nose, tied comically with a nice big bow on top.  
Joey and I, being dogs, had been able to hear both sides of the conversation, and we were quite literally rolling around on the floor laughing our heads off. Ryo was grinning like an idiot, and even Yugi was giggling.

Marik glared at us, held his head high, and walked out the door with an air of injured dignity, the others following while Duke crashed back into the loungechair and went back to working on the laptop. I waited at the door, watching them leave, before I scrabbled it shut.

After a while, Duke yawned and stretched. "C'mere, you."  
I went over, and he fondled my ears. "Remember what I said yesterday? About the tummy rub?"  
–{Yeah?}–  
"Well… Would you like one? Seems wrong to just start without asking…"  
I rolled over.–{Go ahead.}–

Duke reached down, and immediately the dog in me was in heaven – even letting out a little whine of pleasure when Duke's fingers brushed that sweet spot under my ribs.  
–{Mmmmm…}–  
"Enjoying that?" Duke asked me, and I nodded, not wanting him to stop.  
–{It's… it's… Amazing. You should try being a dog someday. When someone pats you, it's… Man, I can't even begin to describe how great it feels!}–  
Duke nodded, and stopped stroking me. "You know-"  
I wiggled in anticipation, rubbing my back on the floor.–{Yeah, yeah. Just do it!}–  
"- I reckon you really do have the hots for me..."  
–{I do not!}– I rolled to my feet and backed away, but the teen absentmindedly scratched me behind the ears, and I immediately rolled over. Stupid dog instincts!  
He thought for a moment. "Not to mention that this conversation could be taken completely out of context… 'Just do it!', I believe you just said then."  
–{Look, shut it!}– I snapped.–{I do **not** have feelings for you! It's just the dog mind who's enjoying this! I find it creepy!}–  
And a few seconds later:–{Umm… You don't suppose I could still have the tummy rub, do you?}–Argh, I couldn't help but ask!  
Duke grinned, knowing he'd won. "If you want."  
–{YES!}– I cheered, then checked myself - Duke was grinning from ear to ear, and I realized I'd accidentally thought it at him. –{Oops. That was definitely _not_ supposed to –}–  
That was when he started stroking me again.  
–{Mmmmmmmmmm…}–

The rest of the day was uneventful, mostly consisting of me lying on Duke's feet while he typed, hacked and edited, with me demorphing every two hours. From what I could tell from Duke's phone conversations, Yugi had learned a fair bit at the meeting – the Yeerks had some sort of major plan they were going to put into action in a few days time, and they were very worried about Marik's disappearance – it sounded like the Egyptian had played a pivotal role in the plan.  
Later that day, Joey, Marik, and Ryo successfully broke into the guard's house, and replaced the video clip with no snags - no-one had been home, so it'd been a piece of cake, according to Joey's thought – speak message.

I couldn't help but think it had gone a little… too well.  
And sure enough, I was right.

An hour after Joey had told us the job had gone well, Duke was pacing. "Tris, I'm worried."  
–{Why?}– I wondered, though I already knew the answer.  
"Well, that was one of Kaiba's guards. The place should have been better patrolled – it didn't even have a security system. That's… very unlike Kaiba, to have done that. And besides… I tried calling Joey, and didn't get any reply. Ryo wasn't home, either. Yugi specifically said they'd be here as soon as they'd finished…"  
–{Maybe they forgot, and they've gone out.}–  
"Maybe, but I can't help but think that this was all a Yeerk set up. It was too easy…"

He had a point there.–{Duke, I'm sure they're fine – maybe they went to find Yugi at that The Sharing party. If they aren't here by five o'clock, then we can start panicking, OK? If something's happened, then we need to stay together – that means no running off without Yugi.}–  
"But… what if it's too late by then?"  
–{Duke, there's no point rushing into things }–

Something scrabbled at the door. –{Duke, Tristan! It's me, Marik!}–  
I glared at Duke. –{See, what'd I tell you? They're fine!}–  
Duke shrugged, and opened the door. The long legged Pharaoh Hound shot straight past him in a blur of red-brown fur, curled up in a shaking ball on the couch. The teen sighed, and shut the door, then went to sit next to Marik.  
"You know, I think I'd still say… not fine. So, what happened?"  
Marik sounded furious.–{I'll tell you what happened! The guard was a Controller, and he got Joey and Ryo when we were leaving!}–  
Duke raised an eyebrow. "And you didn't tell us this earlier because… "  
–{Well, they got me too, they put me in a dog crate and took all three of us to Anzu – she's the head honcho Yeerk around here. She recognized me from when you were walking me this morning – I was a dog, you see. So, she let me go.}–  
I was incredulous.–{What, just like that?}–  
–{Well, no. They made me wait two hours first, just in case I was an Andalite. Apparently, an Andalite would morph rather than be trapped in this body. After that, I ran like blazers. I don't know what happened to Joey and Ryo…}–  
Duke started pacing again. "Now what? If they infest them, they'll know who we are and -"

Something occurred to me right then, and I leaped to my feet.–{Guys, Yugi's in danger!}–  
They looked at me like I'd gone mad. "Umm.. Why would that be?" Duke said at last.  
–{Think. Anzu recognized Marik. Marik was walking with me. Anzu knows Yugi's one of my friends – you too, Duke, but she'll think of Yugi first. She'll want to know exactly why my dog would be hanging around two Andalites, and when she can't find me… well… She knows exactly where Yugi is, and }–  
Duke swore. "We've got to get Yugi out of there!"  
Marik nodded.–{How about this? Tristan, you morph wolf. I'll morph eagle, Duke goes cougar and we all make a big fuss at The Sharing meeting. That gives Yugi time to get away, right?}–  
I looked at Duke.–{That sounds pretty good to me – what do you think?}–

The teen grinned, and went to open the window. I started demorphing. "It's the best plan I can think of. Me and Tristan morph birds to get down near the meeting first, though."  
–{Obviously.}– Feathers were growing out of Marik's fur.  
Duke rolled his eyes, as his feet melted into talons. "All I'm saying is that it may not have been that obvious to Tristan…"  
–{Hey! Not f}– My thought speak disappeared, as I became more human than dog, and a few seconds later I could speak. "Not funny, Duke."

Duke and Marik were done by the time I'd started my kestrel morph, since I was the only one who'd had to morph twice.  
–{Isay we stagger this. I go first, then Marik, then Chicken-Legs over there.}– Duke indicated my scaly legs with one black crow wing, to emphasize his point.  
–{Ooh, extra crispy! My fav!}– Marik commented, and I couldn't help but grin at the way they were being so… well, casual about it. Especially in a situation like this…

As soon as I was finished, Duke shook himself, and launched himself out the open window.  
–{Doesn't say much, does he?}– Marik commented, edging towards the window.–{You'd have thought he'd have told me how to fly…}–  
–{It's pretty simple – just trust the eagle. He knows how to fly.}– I replied, stretching my new wings.–{Come on, I'd say it's safe now.}–  
–{GERONIMOOOOO!}– Marik yelled, and jumped off the ledge, leaving me alone.  
There was a _thump_ in the garden below me. –{Ooookaaay. Yelling "Geronimo" doesn't work.}–  
–{Try _moving_ your wings this time.}– Duke snarked.  
–{Huh? What d'ya mean by – Ohhhh, _now_ I get it!}–  
An eagle soared past the window with a gleeful yell. I sighed, waited a few more minutes, then jumped out the window myself.

–{Duke? Marik?}–  
Duke was the first to respond.–{I'm right below you. Marik's to your left, and above you.}–  
Marik, of course, was informative as always.–{Wheee! Flying is fun!}–  
–{Agreed – let's head to that meeting. }–  
–{Oh, yes.}– I could practically hear the evil grin in Marik's thought-speech.–{The meeting. Oh, this should be fun!}–  
–{The Sharing aren't going to enjoy it, though… }– I pointed out.  
–{Thank you, Captain Obvious}–, Duke deadpanned.  
And then, as Domino Pier came into sight:–{Alright. Let's do this!}–


	7. Ch 6: Rescue

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, Animorphs, or anything else that doesn't belong to me. I only own this story.**  
**Chapter Six: Rescue**

Marik soared high over the beach near the pier, where the party was being held.–{Yugi! Yugi! Get out of there!}–  
Duke and I flew over towards the sand dunes – the plan was to hide behind one, then demorph, morph battle morphs, then attack the party from the east side. Meanwhile, Yugi would slip out during our distraction.

}–Hey, Marik! You don't suppose you could actually explain to Yugi what we're going to do?}– Duke called dryly, as Marik continued yelling his warnings.  
–{I was supposed to?}–  
–{Yes, ya drongo!}–  
–{Oh. Sorry! Hey, Yugi! We're going to gatecrash the party! Run for the alley!}–  
Duke just sighed as we landed on the dunes.–{Of all the people we could have gotten paired with, it _had_ to be him, didn't it?}–  
I bounced nervously.–{Yup. Hey, Marik? Could you keep a lookout for us while we morph?}–  
–{No problemo! Marik's on the job! We're back in business! All hail to the king, baby!}–  
–{He'd better keep a damn good lookout}–, Duke grumbled as we demorphed, and I would have smiled – if I'd had a mouth at that point.

Three minutes later, two teens lay puffing behind the sand dune - morphing really drains your energy, and I'd been morphing practically all day.  
"Morph", Duke whispered to me, and I rolled my eyes, even as a tail shot out from behind me with an awful grinding sound.  
"Wow, really, Duke? I'd never have guessed!"  
Duke showed me a smile – which was now full of cougar teeth. Some were so large, they were actually forcing his mouth open, mutilating his speech.  
"Givensh shore sh'intellecsh, eye woulscht havesch shought sho."  
"I don't even pretend to understand what you just said."  
"Givensch-" he tried again, but then his vocal cords starting to twist and reform rendered him mute. I shivered – morphing was creepy, and this time it was no different.

"Naveerrrr mrind" I said, in a voice that was more a growl than anything else. A few moments later, and I was also unable to form human sounds, due to my tongue shriveling.  
–{In case you were wondering, I said "Given your intellect, I wouldn't have thought so"}–, the teen's voice said in my head a few moments later, and I instinctively looked over... then promptly wished I hadn't. Luckily, I couldn't scream, since the wolf head was still partially formed, the snout only beginning to shove out of my face.  
Duke snickered.–{Man, that's a disgusting look you've got there…}–  
About thirty seconds later, I could reply.–{You don't look so beautiful yourself.}–

Duke was looking pretty hideous, his human muscles bulging way out of proportion, arms being forced in front of him as the bone structure changed – making him look like some sort of zombie. Weirdly, his lower half was still human, but sprouting tan fur, while his upper body was nearly all cougar, with human skin. His face was a very strange mix of human and cat. It made me want to throw up, but I didn't have a stomach at that stage, or a human mouth. I couldn't even take my eyes off him – it was that repulsive.

Another few minutes, and we were both done.  
–{Let's go!}– Duke grinned, trotting across the sand.–{Hey, Yugi! We're going to crash this party, in battle morphs, and we're attacking from the dunes. Get to the alley, morph, and we'll meet up later!}–  
Someone screamed and pointed at Duke. "MOUNTAIN LION!"  
–{_Excuse me?_ I'm a cougar, not a mountain lion!}–  
–{They're the same thing!}–  
–{No, they're not. There's differences!}–  
–{Such as?}–  
–{Um…}–  
People were turning around to stare now, and I broke into a run. We charged side by side down the dunes towards the party-goers–

… and things went horribly wrong. One guy drew something that looked suspiciously like a gun, and a whole bunch of others immediately followed suit. "Andalites!"  
–{Duke, I think we can agree that this was a very bad idea.}–  
–{I didn't expect half of them to be armed!}–

Someone screamed "WHAT THE HELL IS THAT?", as a bunch of six-foot tall, bipedal, bladed aliens started jumping out of a van nearby.  
–{And I don't think either of us expected _that_, either.}– There was no going back now – we were already halfway across the dunes, and the nearest Controllers were closing in.  
–{Attack!}– Duke yelled, caught up in the heat of battle.  
–{Thank you, Captain Obvious.}–

Duke let loose with a snarl that made the Controllers think twice. One guy didn't, and kept running forwards. "Kill them!"  
SLASH!  
The cougar was on him in a second, claws digging deep. A moment later, he stepped off the body, and roared at the top of his lungs.  
–{Duke? Remind me never to make you angry}–, Marik commented from somewhere high above us.

The bladed aliens – Hork-Bajir, I remembered – had reached us now. "Gelest! Gelest Andalites!" the largest yelled, lunging for me.

I didn't need a dictionary to get the general message: _"Kill them! Kill the Andalites!"_ I dodged to the side, and the swung wrist blade just missed me, sinking into the sand. I was like lightning – leaping on his back and tearing his neck out. He dropped.  
There was a deadly silence for a full minute; then I heard Anzu yelling from the back of the crowd. "Whoever kills them gets a promotion! And whoever lets them go will answer to Visser Three! Get them!"

Someone else leaped for me, and… well… I don't really remember what happened after that. The wolf instincts took over, and all I can remember is this image of me and Duke, a grey and tan whirlwind, lunging and tearing. ..

What I remember next is the Controllers turning and running, the cougar grabbing me by the tail as I tried to pursue them.–{Let them go, Tristan. The wolf's controlling you.}–  
The realization of what I'd done hit me then.  
–{Oh my God, Duke… I'm a monster. I've never killed, and}–  
–{There's no **time** for that now!}– Duke snapped.–{We have to get out of here, before more arrive or Anzu rallies them again!}– He was racing back to the dunes.–{Head for the alleyways! Marik, where are you?}–

Marik's voice came into my mind, saying that Yugi was safe… but I didn't really care anymore. I'd killed people with all their lives ahead of them, people possessed by the Yeerks. I'd killed innocents in cold blood! I hung my head, feeling awful -  
–{Hey, Tristan! I asked you a question!}– Marik sounded irritated.  
–{Sorry, I was thinking.}–  
–{There'll be time for that later. I want to know – can you smell Yugi's scent?}–  
I sniffed the air, remembering Yugi's smell from when I'd been a dog earlier.  
–{No.}–  
Duke swore.–{Damn, they could have already got him!}–

Everything was going wrong – Yugi had been caught... or worse, Joey and Ryo were being held by Anzu, possibly trapped in animal forms or infested, there was a manhunt still going on for Marik… but nothing was terrifying as the thought that I had become a monster.  
–{Let's get outta here!}– Duke growled, and we streaked across the dunes, twin blurs of tan and grey.

We ran, demorphed in an alley, I morphed dog as usual, and we went over to Duke's place. Marik we let in through the window. Duke waited for us to have both become human, before he began. "What are we going to do now?"  
Marik's response was instant. "We rescue Joey and Ryo. We know where they are, right?"  
Duke raised an eyebrow. "We do?"  
"Oh, I do. Forgot to tell you – they've been imprisoned in that Yeerk Pool under the shopping centre. You know the one?"  
Duke nodded. "Battle morphs?"  
"Yup. Tear the place apart if we have to. Just get them outta there."  
I stood. "I don't want to do this."  
Marik blinked. "Why?"  
"Listen, and listen good, because I'm only going to say it once. I'm not a killer."  
"You're going to wimp out?" Marik snarled, before Duke could stop him.  
"No! I mean… It's just… I've never taken a life! It's horrible – think of the innocents!"  
Marik shrugged."There's always casualties in a war."  
"Surely there'd be some way to avoid them!"  
"Life's not perfect! Face it, ya coward!"  
I bristled. "How dare you -"  
Duke stepped in between us. "Fighting isn't going to help. Marik, Tristan has a point – if we go all out as you say, we could get hurt. Dead people aren't good fighters, I'm told."  
Marik gritted his teeth… but he backed down. "Fine."  
Duke turned to me. "Tristan, you're going to need to get over this – "  
"Get over this? Seriously? I killed someone! I mean, is any of this worth killing people over? Don't either of you have compassion?" I was yelling, but I didn't care. "Why the _heck _would either of you two kill? Why would anyone?"  
Duke looked at me for a long time. "Marik is… quite ruthless, and he would be willing to kill for a cause – in fact, I believe you've done it before." Marik just nodded, and Duke continued. "I don't want to. Doesn't mean I won't, though. If the Yeerks win, Earth's as good as dead."

I bit back an angry response to that. I was upset – the images of Controllers and dead Hork-Bajir still fresh in my mind. I needed some time to think it over…  
I shook my head. "Duke… I need some time to cope with this–"  
Duke's gaze hardened. "And what would that achieve? We need to get Joey and Ryo out of there! That's our priority!"  
"In that case, forget it!" I yelled, already morphing dog as I headed out the door and down one of the many hallways of Duke's mansion.  
"Hey, wait!" Marik yelled, but I heard a scuffle, and guessed the other boy had pulled him back.  
On came the ears, just in time to hear Duke say quietly, "Let him go." I didn't care – I just kept running, until I finally scrabbled the front door open and ran out onto the street.

I ran back towards my house. At home, I'd be safe, I could think it over –  
No. Wait. I stopped. Last time I'd seen it, Yeerks had been trying to get in. I doubted they'd be content to leave me alone for at least a few weeks…

I thought frantically. Ryo's? No, he was captured – held in the Yeerk Pool, and I didn't want to break into the flat. Joey's was always out of the question, because of his abusive dad – and besides, the blonde had been captured as well. Marik didn't have a home anymore, Anzu was a Controller, Yugi was… well, no-one knew _what _had happened to him, and Duke I'd just run away from…

_Looks like I'll be spending the night on the streets.  
_ _  
_I crept back towards Duke's mansion – that way I could see if they left. Something about me drew me back to them. I had a strong sense of duty – I wanted to help… It had just happened too fast for me to handle, that was all.  
I stayed near Duke's house, watching, waiting. I demorphed and remorphed every two hours, in a dark alleyway by the clock tower.  
And then, just as night fell… A crow and a Golden Eagle flew out of the house's backyard area, and I swore. They were leaving without me!  
I ran through the alleyways and streets, following the two birds, and trying to stay hidden as best I could. As I'd suspected, they were heading towards the shopping centre.

–{Joey! Ryo! Can you hear me? We're coming to rescue you! Marik thought yelled, circling over the shopping centre as the crow dropped down behind the centre, out of sight. –{And Tristan… If you can hear this, we're going in.}–  
It took me a few moments to work out why I hadn't been seen. At night, diurnal birds had problems seeing in the dark, and I'd been sticking to the shadows, which probably helped.

The eagle dropped down too, and a few minutes later, Duke walked out. I couldn't see Marik, but I guessed he'd be around somewhere. The teen walked straight into the shopping centre, and I ducked into an alleyway, demorphing as fast as I could.

Problem: If a Yeerk saw me, they'd recognize me and raise the alarm.

Solution: Acquire a person. It was a simple matter to knock out a lone thug and acquire him, then take his clothes and morph him. Fifteen minutes later, I walked into the shopping centre, headed for the change rooms in the Big W, and walked into the third stall from the left, grabbing the second clothes hook from the right and turning it once… twice…

I paused. Did I really want to follow Duke and Marik? They could have been captured, for all I knew…

And that's when I heard the thought-scream. Joey. He sounded terrified.  
–{HEEEEELLP!}–  
A moment later, Duke thought-grunted in pain.  
"I'm coming."I whispered.

I turned the hook again, and a set of doors slid open silently in front of me, leading to a lift that I knew would take me to the Yeerk Pool.  
–{Hey, Marik. Can you hear me? I've morphed a human – I'm in the lift.}– I wasn't sure if thought – speak worked in a human morph, but I tried anyway.  
Marik sounded relieved. –{Tristan! Is that you?}–  
–{Yes. I followed you… I thought I heard Joey scream, so I came. What's going on?}–  
–{Bad stuff… You'll want to have a battle morph. Be prepared.}– He didn't need to tell me – I'd demorphed at top speed, and already morphing wolf.

As soon as I could, I asked the question I was desperate to have answered. –{Marik, where's Ryo? What's happened to Duke?}–  
–{Ryo's – AGH!}–  
–{MARIK! Are you OK? }–  
No reply.  
–{Joey! Ryo! Duke! Yugi! What's going on?}–  
Nothing… and then the doors opened.

The scene was horrific. Firstly, the Yeerk Pool itself was awful – the pool of grey sludge filled with Yeerks awaiting hosts, the cages around it containing the people who had been captured and would soon be infested, the piers Marik had told me about, where Hork-Bajir shoved people's heads into the pool, allowing Yeerks to enter…  
Secondly, there was a massive, scaly creature rampaging through the Yeerk Pool - a Komodo dragon, gone berserk. The sight was sickening to watch.

–{Someone! What's going on?}–  
Duke sounded relieved.–{Tristan! Thank God you came! Ryo's gone berserk. He can't seem to control the Komodo Dragon's mind. I'm thinking we should collapse the Yeerk Pool on him.}–  
–{But that would kill him!}–  
The boy's voice was emotionless, hard as steel. –{Precisely.}–

I looked at the big lizard, massacring Controllers and Hork-Bajir, then noted how close the cages of non-Controllers were to it.

–{Let's at least get the non-Controllers outta there before we do anything.}–  
–{Tristan, I'm ordering you to- }–  
–{You're not my leader. I'm not part of this group anymore, remember?}– I raced towards the cages. –{Where's the others?}–  
–{Not sure. Last I saw him, Marik was hurt bad, and demorphing fast. As for Joey and Yugi, I have no clue where they are. Tristan, you can't save Ryo! He's completely out of control!}–  
–{Uh-uh. Nope. There'll be a way to reach him.}–  
–{What if there isn't?}– Duke wondered, but I chose not to answer that. Instead, I ran to the cages, grabbed the dropped keys of some guard that were lying nearby, and shoved them through the gap.  
–{Escape, then let the others out. OK?}–  
They all nodded shakily, and one guy picked them up, unlocked the door, then tossed them through to the cage next door.

–{See, Duke? That wasn't_ that_ hard.}–  
–{Tristan, you're getting on my nerves now. Whose side are you on?}–  
Again, I ignored him, this time turning towards the crazed Ryo.–{Duke, cover me. I'm going to-}–  
–{Can't. Sorry.}–  
–{Why?}–  
–{I'm under a pile of twisted metal.}–  
–{_WHAT?!_}–  
–{Yeah, Ryo smashed me into it. I'm having… issues getting out.}–  
_  
How could he sound so calm?  
_  
I grunted. –{Oh, great. Just what we needed. Marik's hurt, you're trapped, Ryo's berserk }–  
–{Joey's getting infested over there, too.}–

I made my decision. It didn't really matter what happened now. It didn't matter if someone recognized me. All that mattered was that I got Ryo back to normal – if Joey was infested, we'd be found out pretty soon anyway. Besides, the big lizard was blocking the path between me and the pier.

_Hold on, Joey._

I demorphed behind the cages. "Ryo! Over here!" I hollered, stepping out.  
Duke swore.–{Are you _insane_?}–

I nodded, unable to use thought speak as always, and the boy's voice just sighed in my mind. The Komodo Dragon gave me a look that said '_You're next!_', and started advancing.  
"Please, Ryo... Snap out of it. C'mon, buddy. Remember me?"

The lizard halted for a moment… then it sprung, pinning me down. I gazed into its eyes, hoping to find a spark of recognition… somewhere..."Ryo, I know you're in there. Would you hurt me? Would you kill me?" It leaned in closer, its breath warm on my face. "Ryo. Please... I've been with you through so much…"  
–{Tristan, you're not Anzu! Friendship speeches don't work! Run while you can!}–

Jaws closed around my arm, preparing to rip it off, but I kept on trying. "Remember Battle City? No? What about me? My name is Tristan, and I'm your best friend, and you damn well know it!"  
A pause –

And then Ryo's voice, timid as ever, came into my mind.–{Tristan?}–  
"I'm here."  
The lizard looked around at the carnage.–{Never again. Never.}–  
"Agreed."

We stared at each other for a long moment; but the cougar proceeded to spoil it by yelling–{Oi! Ryo! Would you mind getting me out of this mess?}–  
The Komodo Dragon lumbered over.–{Coming, Duke!}–  
I was about to follow, when Joey yelled again – human this time. "HEEEEELP! Someone! Help! Dey've got me!"  
I ducked behind the cages again, morphed back to wolf.–{Ryo, you take care of Duke. I'm going to get Joey.}–  
–{Tristan, no!}–

Too late. I was sprinting towards the pier, Joey was being dragged towards the pier – it was a race against time now. He screamed and snarled at the top of his lungs, and lashed out with all his strength, but I could see he was weakening. Slowly but surely, step by step, Joey was being pushed back. Back towards the Yeerk Pool.

"GRAAARR!"  
_No!_

A Hork-Bajir leaped out in front of me, I slashed at it - but it was enough. the few seconds it had taken to tear it open were enough. Now, there was no way I'd make it in time. I howled in frustration, thought screaming as I ran. I knew too well what was going to happen now – they'd infest Joey, they'd make him one of them, they'd know who we were and then they'd take us, too.  
After all I'd been through, we were going to lose…


	8. Ch 7: Escape

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, Animorphs, or anything else that doesn't belong to me. I only own this story.**  
**Chapter Seven: Escape  
**  
Joey was on the edge of the Yeerk Pool now, refusing to get on his knees, and I was still too far away to reach him.  
"Get in!"  
"Yah, getting' yerself, ya– Uh!"  
A Hork – Bajir kicked the teen's legs out from under him, sending him sprawling. In return, the blonde kicked out with both legs, getting the alien in the face as it bent over him.  
"RRARGH!"  
Another three Hork–Bajir ran forwards, grabbing Joey and–  
"KIIYAAAA!" The screech of a diving bird of prey was the only warning the aliens got, and even then all it made them do was look up. A golden eagle dropped on top of them, talons lashing out and wings blinding the Controllers, giving Joey a chance to run for it.

–{Duke!}–  
You could hear the smugness in his voice.–{In case you hadn't noticed, Tristan, eagles are always faster than wolves.}–  
I ignored the insult and arrived on the scene a minute later, sinking my teeth into Hork–Bajir and letting loose with a nice warning growl. Needless to say, the others fled.  
Ryo joined us a few minutes later, and I relaxed. Everyone except Yugi seemed to be all right – Marik said he was remorphing and would be there in a few minutes. Things were almost normal as Joey came strolling over…

Almost.  
–{Guys, look out!}– Ryo warned.  
The evil look on Joey's face as he held up the cage said it all. "Your friend, right?"  
The golden eagle inside looked battered itself against the bars.–{Sorry guys. I should have known!}–  
–{Marik, are you alright?}–  
–{Yeah, but I'm guessing that won't be for long.}–  
"Is he your friend or not?" Joey demanded, and it was Duke who responded.  
–{Yup, he's one of us.}–  
"Den Visser Three will be pleased."

–{Joey, don't do this! Can't you see it's wrong?}– Ryo pleaded, but Joey just shook his head, smiling mockingly at him.  
"Ah, you must be Ryo. Moral as always. Joey likes to think you're weak, you know… I think it's time you learned a lesson. There is no _wrong_. There is no _right_. You may think you live in a fairytale world, but we don't. We kill. We hurt. Get over yourself."  
Something was wrong with that statement, but I couldn't pick it.

He looked at me for what seemed like an age – he was trying to tell me something, but I had no clue what. A large figure appeared behind him, flanked by what looked like a veritable crowd of Hork–Bajir, and reluctantly Joey tore his eyes away to look at the Visser.  
"The bird is one of them."  
–{Good, good. So, Andalite bandits. How do you like this morph? Is it strong enough for you? I recently acquired it on the planet Rota, and wished to try it out. I do hope you won't mind.}–

Ryo looked like he was going to throw up, and I couldn't blame him. Visser Three's morph was nothing short of horrific. Four dog– like heads grew on wrinkled necks, from a short, stumpy body that could be best described as a miniature Diplodocus. Only with twenty centimeter long killer claws, four on each foot, and the tail replaced with four long, thorny tentacles… This creature seemed to have something about the number four.

–{You _will_ surrender. I will give you one chance – the promise of your friend's safety if you will submit.}–  
–{And what good is the promise of a Visser? We will never surrender!}– Duke thought–yelled in his very best "arrogant Andalite" voice.  
–{Then watch your friend die.}– With one swift motion, one of the heads shot forwards, the neck extending like a spring so the teeth could grab the door of the cage and rip it off. Before Marik could move, a tentacle had grabbed him around the throat. Visser Three's laugh echoed in our heads as he pulled the bird out of the cage, slowly choking it. The Hork–Bajir joined in, and Joey smiled, thought I noticed he wasn't laughing.

I bristled.–{Marik, I'm com–}–  
–{Tristan. Don't move. There are at least fifty Hork–Bajir with Dracon beams trained on us right now. Don't be stupid!}–Duke growled at me.  
–{Dracon beams?}–  
–{That's what they call those laser guns.}–  
–{Oh.}–  
Joey gave me that look again, trying to communicate, but I still had no idea what he wanted.  
Duke looked straight at the Visser.–{What do you want?}–  
–{You refused the first time, Andalite.}– Visser Three snarled, and the tentacle squeezed harder, A strange sound came from Marik, and it took me a moment to work out that his windpipe was slowly being crushed.–{So, I will make you a different offer. Demorph. Now.}–

Duke started to answer, but Ryo jumped in.–{Wait. Duke, why would the Visser be calling you an Andalite if Joey was a Controller? Surely Joey's Yeerk would have told him?}–  
Visser Three held the eagle aloft for all to see.–{You have ten seconds to decide, Andalites!}–  
–{Ryo's right. What if Joey's not a Controller?}– I wondered.  
–{What if he is, and he just wants power for himself?}– Duke argued.–{I mean, seriously. The chances of that loyal idiot insulting anyone are about one in–}–  
–{Duke, we have to take a gamble here!}– Ryo pleaded.

–{Your time is up, Andalites!}– The Visser tightened his grip on the eagle, the thorns biting into the feathers now. Marik let out a gurgle, and–  
One of the Hork–Bajir leapt forwards, blades flashing. Suddenly the Visser only had three tentacles.  
And a familiar voice said in my head–{Hey, guys.}–  
–{Yugi!}– I cheered.  
–{Yeah, did you really think I was a goner?}–  
–{ARGHHH!}– Visser Three screamed, demorphing as fast as he could. I raced forwards and grabbed Marik as gently as I could, darting away before the Hork–Bajir could react and depositing him a little distance away from the fight. To my relief, I could hear shallow breathing, and fur was beginning to replace the feathers. I dashed back to the fight, and everything seemed to go in slow motion. I heard Ryo's roar beside me as side by side, we charged the nearest Hork–Bajir. They were fast, but again and again, we were faster, killing them quickly and efficiently…

And as I fought, I caught a glimpse of Joey. He was just standing there, watching while the Hork–Bajir tried to help the Visser and find the traitor in their midst at the same time, watching while Ryo and I charged the aliens. Watching me, even as I slashed and fought with all my might.

Watching… and smiling.

After what seemed like hours later, but could only have been minutes, Visser Three, now a full Andalite – a creature best resembling a centaur, if the horse part had been replaced by deer and had been given a deadly scorpion like tail –stepped out of hiding, rounding on Joey.  
–{Fool! You brought me this bird! If it wasn't for you, we would be winning!}– The tailblade flashed, but then the Hork–Bajir was there, deflecting it with one wrist–blade.  
Visser Three lunged forwards in a fury, and Yugi slid under the tail strike – but it was a feint! One hoof tripped the alien, and then the tail came down, the deadly blade flashing–

–and Joey punched the Visser in the face, making the Andalite stagger and miss.–{Why, you–}–  
"Hey, don't just assume things. Just because they were dragging me over near the pool doesn't mean that I got infested."  
Then he was gone, running towards the entrance of the Yeerk Pool.

With a roar of rage, Visser Three started shouting orders as, one by one, we followed Joey's example, running as fast as we could towards the lift. Yugi and I were the last to flee, holding the Hork–Bajir as best we could and all the while backing slowly towards the lifts.  
The Visser's voice was like thunder in our heads.–{KILL THEM! KILL THEM!}–  
Yugi gritted his teeth.–{Right. Marik, are you coming?}–  
–{Yeah, coming, coming. It takes time to morph!}–  
–{Time's not something we have much of at the moment! Hurry!}–

I waited until a dog bolted past me – a Pharaoh Hound, to be precise – before I turned and ran after it.  
–{That is it. I am OFFICIALLY never doing that, ever again!}– Marik howled.  
–{Agreed.}–  
Ryo was already demorphing, knowing that his Komodo Dragon would be too big to fit in the lift. Somehow, he managed to keep moving while he was doing it – I wasn't sure if it was due to talent or due to the rather high things at stake.

We all made it to the lift, and went human on the way up. Joey was waiting for us outside the changeroom. "Hey."

I looked around at the others. Joey looked exhausted. Ryo was trembling like a leaf. Duke just stared into space, for once unable to make a smart comment. Marik leaned heavily on the nearest wall, shaking his head. Yugi seemed to be struggling with himself.  
Ryo was the first to speak. "N–never again."  
Duke was blunt as always. "Unfortunately, I think there will be an 'again'. And another, and another."  
Ryo let out what could only be described as a whimper, and nearly collapsed. I glared at Duke. "Just leave him alone, will you?"  
"But it's the truth!"  
Yugi stepped between us "It can wait until tomorrow. It's late, we're all tired–"  
Marik yawned. "One question. What happened to you and Ryo, Joey?"  
"Well, Ryo an' I were captured, stuffed in da backova truck, den taken over to da Yeerk Pool. When Duke an' Marik arrived, dey managed to get Ryo out. Ryo morphed while dey were trying to free me… but then he went mental. You saw what happened after dat. Wat about you, Yug'?"

Yugi shrugged. "Me? I worked out that the Yeerks would be on my tail around the same time my granddad started asking all these questions. I made an excuse and headed over to Duke's… but you guys weren't there. I guess you went to look for me or something, because the next thing I know, there's a wolf, a cougar, and a golden eagle running around on the beach."

That got a few smiles from the others. I just nodded while Yugi explained how he'd kept on missing us, until he'd found out that Marik and Duke were heading into the Yeerk Pool. He'd gone in through a different entrance to me, and had morphed Hork–Bajir as soon as Visser Three showed up.  
Yugi blinked. "Hey, Tristan. You weren't with Duke and Marik, were you?"  
I just nodded.  
"Why?"  
"Oh, well–"  
"Tristan doesn't like killing." Duke said bluntly. "He needed some time to deal with what happened at the beach – he killed a few down there."  
Ryo spoke. "What just happened… that was awful."  
"Yes, but we've gotta keep fighting", Marik said grimly. "We don't have a choice – I'm guessing it'll be raid the Yeerk Pool tomorrow, Yugi?"  
Yugi considered a moment, but even before he'd said it, I knew what he was going to say. Yugi would never push us to exhaustion – he was far too clever for that.  
"Ah. Well, I guess we all need to deal. We should take a break for a few days, meet up after that."

We all went our separate ways after that – Ryo, Joey, and Yugi all had homes to go to, Duke had some sort of CEO business to take care of, tossing me the keys to his mansion before he left. Even Marik was strangely quiet as he strolled, then after a quick detour through an alleyway, trotted on four legs beside me. To be honest, I wasn't surprised – my whole body ached, and worse still, I was still reeling from the nightmarish images that had been burned into my brain.

After a long day, I was exhausted. I crashed into bed, hoping the nightmares wouldn't be too bad…

_The next day…  
_  
I stood, shivering next to Ryo, holding Duke's camera, on top of a skyscraper, at one o'clock in the morning.  
Yup, it was Marik's idea to do this – it was the silliest scheme I'd ever heard of, but for some strange reason (possibly a case of Puppy Eyes Syndrome), I was still doing it anyway. The idea was to make it look like Marik was dead, so the police wouldn't be looking for him anymore. His guardian Odion and sister Ishizu were both going back to Egypt in a few hours time, so we were having to do it today if word was to get to them.

Of course, Marik himself was currently asleep on my bed, claiming he was not needed to help film. Typical.  
I stared down – a very long way down – at the empty streets, and glanced over at Ryo.  
"Sure about this? You reckon you can demorph and remorph in time?"  
The teen nodded, white hair becoming blonde as he shifted into Marik. "I'm sure."  
The hyper Pharaoh Hound had literally dragged us out of our beds and explained what he wanted us to do. I just hoped Ryo would be able to morph in time…

Ryo clicked the play button, then walked back and bent down to the camera's level. I'd adjusted the camera already – this was just to make it look like Marik was filming the video himself.  
Nervously, the teen took a deep breath and recited his line. Since Marik himself had thought the words up, they were, of course, simple and straight to the point.  
"Sorry. I just can't take it anymore."

He walked around behind me and the camera, so I could then pick it up, point it over the edge and show everyone exactly how high the building was. After that, I took it to the spot I'd decided on – sitting on the edge of the building on its little tripod, and tilted downwards, so we'd could see him fall. As soon as I'd finished adjusting the camera, Ryo swung both legs over the edge, then maneuvered so that he was hanging by his hands off the edge of the building, in full view of the camera. I nodded to him, and he bowed his head–then let go.  
Nervously, I looked over the edge, watching as falling Marik became falling Ryo, who promptly grew wings, slowing his fall as best he could while he morphed. He managed to pull up just in time, soaring into the air–

I turned off the camera, packing it into its little case before morphing kestrel. We'd cut the video off at the point where Marik became obviously something other than Marik, then hand in a copy of the little film we'd made to the police, and a second copy to Marik's family.  
Spreading my newly-formed wings, I picked up the camera case in my talons. I had _better_ get a non–interrupted sleep tomorrow, or else-  
–{Tristan?}–  
–{Yeah, Ryo?}–  
–{Couldn't we just… you know… fly away? And never come back? Never have to fight again?}–

A chill went down my spine. Ryo had a point, we had wings. If we wanted to, we could steal whatever we needed from homes, hide out somewhere and live an idyllic life – couldn't we? Could we?  
A long silence, while I struggled with my thoughts. No killing. No more fighting, no more being scared and uncertain about my friends, no more nightmares…  
It was an effort to get it out, but I managed it.–{No. We have to fight. There's this little thing called duty. If we run, Earth won't stand a chance.}–  
Ryo was quiet for a while before he replied.–{I–I know. It's just…}–  
–{Tempting, isn't it?}–  
–{Yeah.}–  
–{You'll stay with us, though?}–  
–{I guess I don't have a choice.}–  
–{No, I don't think any of us do.}–_And that's what makes it such a horrible burden to carry_, I added silently.  
–{Will we win?}–  
–{How would I know?}–  
–{We're the good guys, right?}–

I couldn't answer that one. Were you still good, if you'd killed some innocent person because of what was hiding in his head? Was killing an already injured Hork–Bajir _really_ self–defense?  
And so we flew on, into an uncertain future.


	9. Ch 8: A New Beginning

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, Animorphs, or anything else that doesn't belong to me. I only own this story.  
**  
**Chapter Eight: The Next Step**

**MARIK**  
I stood in the hallway of Duke's mansion. "Coming?"  
"Yeah, all right, Dog–Boy!" Duke yelled from upstairs, presumably adding the finishing touches to his complex daily outfit.  
"Ah, hurry up! I'm not going to stand here all day!"  
"Hopefully you won't. You might get stuck."  
"_Duke!_"  
"When are you two going to stop antagonizing each other?" Tristan growled, checking his watch as he came through the front door behind me. Tristan had a near–infinite amount of patience with me and Duke – when he got irritated, it was usually a good idea to get moving. The brunette stood taller than either me or Duke, and was broad across the shoulders. Anyone even _thinking_ about getting into a fist fight with him would do well to think again.  
I shrugged. "We'll probably stop the day the world explodes."  
"Yeah, right. We came close during that tournament–"  
"Oh, I remember! A _children's card game_ nearly destroyed the world!"  
"Actually, I believe _you_ nearly did."  
"Pish tush. You complain about me fooling around – you do it all the time with Duke!"  
"That's different… Come on, Duke. We've only got two hours!" he called upstairs.  
As usual, Duke couldn't resist being smart. "Less. According to my watch, Dog–Boy's already spent ten minutes–"  
"Waiting for _Your Highness_ to get ready!" I retorted.  
"You've still spent ten minutes of your precious time" he said smoothly, stepping straight past me and Tristan, right out the door. As usual, the raven–haired teen looked immaculate, every strand of hair carefully and painstakingly arranged, the bracelets he always wore at the perfect viewing angle. I guess he had a reputation to keep – he was the CEO of his own private company, after all.

"Oh, and by the way, Tristan… you might want to leave the collar and leash at home next time!" he called over his shoulder, strolling towards the waiting sports car. With a start, Tristan realized what he was carrying, swore and ran back inside. Duke winked at me, and revved the engine, and we both giggled as Tristan tore back outside, running over to the car and leaping in as Duke pulled out of the driveway, locking the front door of his house with a single button on the car's dashboard.

Duke's fancy car aside, it would have been a normal day for any other teenager – just three friends heading out to watch a movie. We'd probably talk about games on the way up there, make shadow puppets and provide quiet–yet–irritating commentary during the ads, then proceed to argue about whether said movie was actually good or not on the way home. It was a fairly common routine for three friends heading to the movies – Duke was even buying junk food for us, something no–one had ever done for me before.

And yet… I was a long way from normal – Tristan and Duke knew it, too. In fact, they weren't exactly the poster boys of 'normal', either – but for today, we were going to try and be as normal as we could. That was sort of the point – after the excitement and stress we went through every day of the week, we were longing for something… a little less exciting. In addition, the police had forgotten about me, calling off the manhunt from when I'd gone missing. We'd sent them a tape of me jumping off a skyscraper, and they'd bought the lie – this was to celebrate.

The trip to the movies was nothing really worth talking about – aside from the animated discussions ensuing over who would kick whose butt in Halo 3, who would win in a fight between a cougar and a wolf, and who was best at card games, nothing happened. It was wonderful.  
"Come on! Do you want to get stuck looking like that?" Duke called over his shoulder as I spaced out in the parking lot, and I winced.  
_That could actually happen to me…  
_  
Sitting in the theatre for the first hour was also… well, not a particularly interesting experience. There is only so much one can actually say about a movie where one character goes running around, blows up a bunch of things, and this apparently saves the world… or something like that, anyway. When it got interesting was when Tristan tapped his watch at me, and I got down on hands and knees to crouch. We were in the back row – Duke, being unbelievably rich, had bought out the entire row, so no–one else would see what we about to do.

Are you confused yet? I thought you might be. Well, my name is Marik. I used to be a pretty much average teenager – though if I say so myself, an excellent duelist. You might have heard of me – I made it to the final round of the Battle City duels. By duels, I mean playing a card game. An _excellent_ card game, before you snigger. Serious business!

Like I said: I _used _to be ordinary.  
Let me start from the start: There's aliens invading Earth. Trust me, they aren't cute – they're little parasitic slugs called Yeerks. And slowly, person by person, they are taking over our planet. It's a silent invasion – one by one, they're capturing people, dragging them into their secret bases underground. That's where you'll be infested.

Wanna know what it's like? Well, you'll be locked in a cage with a dozen other hosts by people who have already been taken over. You'll be dragged, kicking and screaming, down to the Yeerk Pool – a massive, circular pool filled with sludge, where the slugs await their hosts. They'll dunk your head into the pool, and then they wait. Within a few seconds, you'll feel one writhing its way into your ear, and before you know it, it'll take control of your whole body. There's no secret the Yeerk won't know about you – it'll read your memories like an open book. And suddenly, you'll only be able to watch, as the Yeerk takes control of you, and uses you to lure your family, your friends, into the same fate.

The torture doesn't end there, either. Every three days, the Yeerk must return to the pool to feed and soak up Kandora rays – without Kandora rays, it will die. That means that every three days, you'll be forced to repeat the nightmare of the Yeerk Pool and being infested. It's horrible, trust me.

How do I know what it's like? Well, I was a Controller for eight awful weeks. They took me right after I came in second place in the duels.

For eight weeks it went on… Then an alien spaceship crashed in a construction site here in Domino City. It was an Andalite spaceship, the bane of the Yeerk's existence. The Andalite the Yeerks found was badly injured… but they were worried that there were others. They'd seen some kids fleeing from the scene, too. My heart rose when I heard this information, and I hoped that someone would now be able to fight. Maybe Earth wasn't totally doomed.

All the Yeerks were on high alert, pursuing any animal that was behaving strangely. See, Andalites have access to morphing technology, which allows the user – of any species at all – to become any animal they touch. My Yeerk was lucky – it found a kestrel and an owl hanging out together. Pursuing the kestrel, the Yeerk's luck changed abruptly, and someone knocked me out.

As it turned out, five teenagers had been at the construction site that night – they had touched a blue box offered to them by the dying Andalite. They'd gained the morphing power, and were now fighting the Yeerks, as I found out. They were all people I'd met during Battle City, and they'd travelled in a little group together back then. They still did, only I'd joined them now. One of those five teenagers was Duke Devlin, another was Tristan Taylor – I'll get to the other three later. Duke was the one who'd tricked the Yeerk into coming out of my head, Tristan had been the kestrel I'd followed. I managed to work out who they were, even when they were a cat and a dog – and when the other members of the group had arrived, they collectively decided to give me the blue box to hold.  
Ever since then, I've been fighting. I'll go back to that Yeerk Pool… and I'll blow it up. It'll be in so many pieces that by the time I'm finished–

But I shouldn't let my anger take control of me. When it does, I black out. I think someone might be controlling me while I'm like that, though that's probably just me being paranoid.

Anyway, morphing is not all–powerful. There's a two hour time limit. You go over that limit, you'll become trapped in morph. Long story short, I was trapped in my very first morph – a dog. I was lucky – the Ellimist, a sort of all–powerful being, gave me my human form back… but now it's just a morph. Just like with my eagle morph, I can only become human for two hours.  
Now you understand why I was so eager to get out of the house, why time was so important.

So, back to the movie theatre. I was crouched behind the seat, waiting for Duke to give the OK signal.  
"Is the coast clear yet?" I whispered. Tristan checked around to make sure no–one was watching us, one last time, then nodded to me. I closed my eyes… and felt the changes begin.

Morphing's an unpredictable thing – I couldn't see that well in the near dark, but I could see and hear enough to understand what was going on. Duke and Tristan looked away, for good reason – morphing's also disgusting. Sometimes, parts just pop out, like the extra teeth growing inside my mouth. Sometimes, normal parts of you wither or stretch, like my tongue now did, becoming so long it wouldn't fit in my mouth and hanging out the side. Fortunately, the technology deadens the pain, but it still felt very odd. Within a few seconds, I was completely unable to form recognizable sounds, and I felt my vocal chords start to twist within my throat.

"Shoes!" Duke hissed at me, and I automatically fumbled to get them off – once again, I'd forgotten that you could only morph skintight clothing. Tristan quietly removed my jacket, and I nodded gratefully to him. As I pulled off my sandals, I was treated to the sight of the stubby claws of the dog growing from human fingers, which quickly went from being long and slender to short and chubby. My spine made a strange grinding noise as it pushed outwards, becoming a quarter–length tail extending behind me.

I heard the all–too–familiar creaks and cracks my skull made, as it began to shift outwards, too. I had a dog snout partially growing out of my face, when with a grinding noise, my knees reversed direction, my legs bending and withering. I nearly fell over as my centre of balance shifted, making it far too hard to crouch.

The changes continued, and I became more dog than human. The skin on my palms thickened into rough pads, then my chubby fingers went altogether, shrinking into what had once been my palms and leaving me with paws. My shoulders shifted and bulged upwards, my arms getting short and furry. The fur – lush and long, and a beautiful rich red–brown colour –washedover my body, my back creaking into a position better suited to a quadruped. My neck grew longer, extending outwards, and my human features rearranged themselves, my snout stretching right out now and filling my vision, my ears stretching and moving up the sides of my head.

My feet were the final thing to change, my ankles becoming far too thin, while my feet extended into long, dainty paws. It had taken about three minutes – there was now a rather good looking Pharaoh Hound in the spot where I'd been.

My true form.

The dog's mind bubbled up inside my own. It wanted to play, but I pushed it back. It had been hard at first, but I was almost used to it now, being a dog most of the time.  
Tristan glanced towards the entrance. "Be quick. Someone might come in…"

He didn't need to encourage me – as a dog, I felt pretty uncomfortable in the theatre. The sound from the speakers was horribly loud to my sensitive ears, the light from the screen far too bright. My nose picked up smells that I hadn't been able to smell as a human, but were shockingly strong to the dog. I shifted back to human, and tugged on my sandals, wrapping my jacket back around me.  
"How much longer does it go for?"  
"Another hour or so. You can demorph again on the way back."  
"Ah, good", I nodded, settling back into my seat.

A moment later, Tristan froze… then swore softly. "Someone's seen us. Get ready to run."  
I spotted a dark shadow flitting towards the exit. "You reckon he saw me… you know?"  
"Yup. No doubt about it."  
We both looked towards Duke. When the whole group was together, he wasn't the leader. However, as the member with the highest number of brain cells right now, he was in charge of formulating a plan.  
And sure enough, exactly twenty seconds later, he had one. "Right… Plan A: We walk out, nice and calmly, and no–one knows any different."  
"That's not much of a plan."  
"Hey, it's a simple option, right?"  
We got up, headed for the doors, and–  
CLICK.

The lights snapped on. The movie froze.  
"Halt!" A teen, younger than us – perhaps thirteen or fourteen, with long, unbrushed black hair going to his waist, came striding into the theatre… with at least twenty or so gun–toting men behind him to back up his order.  
Tristan swore again. That was Mokuba, Kaiba's little brother. We'd all had run–ins with his brother at some point – Kaiba was Duke's main competitor in selling games, Tristan had been lured and trapped in a sadistical theme park with rides designed to kill him, and I'd been looked down upon by Kaiba repeatedly.

Duke went to face down his competitor's little brother. "Mokuba… Just _what_ is the meaning of this?" he snarled.  
"You know what I saw, Devlin. You're all coming with me."  
Duke sighed. "I'll have to let your big brother know that you're doing drugs again. Can't we just sit the movie out?"  
Twenty hitmen cocked their guns, and we raised our hands in surrender.  
"OK, evidently not…"  
The teen remained silent, until we got to a large truck. "Get in."  
I felt the distinct sharp nudge of a gun being jammed into my back, and the thug behind me shoved me into the back of the truck. Tristan and Duke followed shortly afterwards, Mokuba and his fathful butler climbed in behind us, and the hatch slammed shut.

"Mokuba!" Duke snarled, as the butler calmly tied us up, our wrists bound behind our backs. "What are you doing? I understand your brother's rivalry with my company, but–"  
Mokuba whirled on him. "This has nothing to do with my brother, Devlin. What I'd like to know is how _he_ –" and here he pointed at Tristan, "was filmed not four weeks ago turning into a kestrel, and on official Kaiba Corp footage, too! That fake video I'm assuming i_you_/i put up to protect Tristan, claiming the original to be a fake… Well, I'm not buying it. And while you're at it, Devlin, perhaps you could explain how Marik there was involved in a very real suicide involving him jumping off a building, and is not only alive and right in front of me, he actually turned into a _dog_ today?"  
"Umm… Well…"  
"Tell me now!"

Bad move – demands only increased Duke's chances of being a smartass He certainly didn't pass up this golden opportunity. "I heard they were adding extra chemicals to the drugs. Seems I was right."  
"I'm NOT on drugs!"  
"Try explaining that to your big brother!"  
Mokuba sighed, looking at us. "I don't suppose either of you two would care to explain yourselves?"  
Tristan looked pained. "Must we?"  
"I would have thought _you'd _agree with me. You're the logical one." Mokuba pleaded.  
"Yes, but it's complicated."  
He yawned. "I'm used to complicated."  
"You'll just get in the way!" I added.

Kaiba's little brother looked pained... then his face went as hard as stone. "This is my last offer." He pulled out a DVD. "The videos of Tristan turning into a bird and Marik being not only alive but going from human to dog and back again are right here, on this disc. As a sign of good faith, I made sure they don't exist anywhere else. My offer stands thus: Explain yourselves, I'll destroy the disc, no–one will know any different. But if you don't… well… This goes online."

I sighed. "Let me handle this. I've only got five minutes left, anyway."  
Tristan swore. "What? Five minutes? Demorph! Now!"  
I nodded to Mokuba. "I'll show you something… on condition we do it alone. No security or cameras or anything."

He nodded in agreement, speaking into a walkie–talkie. "Stop the truck." He waved his butler out, taking the man's gun and pointing it right at me as the hatch slammed down again behind him. "No funny tricks, though, or you'll get it."  
"No tricks." I could feel the fur growing all down my front, curling under my jacket. Thinking quickly, I managed to get it off as my arms shrank and withered – but my sandals were abruptly sacrificed before I could do anything about them, ripped apart as my feet became too big for them.  
"Aw, damn it! I was fond of those!"

Mokuba's jaw dropped in shock as he realized what was happening to me – but I kept going. Three minutes later, I was a full canine, and standing on all fours, staring up at the kid. Mokuba's gun–hand shook.  
"Wha… What _are_ you?"  
Duke shrugged. "We don't know. We just look after him."

Quickly, before Mokuba could think about calling his guards,I remorphed back to human, and pulled out a little something that I found rather useful to have around. Yugi had given it back to me a few weeks ago, after our first raid on the Yeerk Pool – he'd apparently stolen it from my place. I found it was a very, very useful Millennium Item, and somehow it would melt into me or just disappear whenever I morphed, manifesting at my side or in my hand as soon as I became human. It was probably some sort of Millennium Item ancient magic or whatever – at any rate, I got it every time I became human. This was, of course, a very useful thing.  
Mokuba backed away "Hey! I thought... I thought I said no tricks! What are you pulling out? What are _you_?"

I smirked, and pointed the long, golden Millennium Rod at him. "Me? Oh, I'm nothing you're going to remember… Drop the gun, please."  
His eyes went blank, and the gun clattered to the floor. I kept my voice calm, asserting my control over him. He struggled, but his mind was young, weak, easy to crush and command…

"You aren't going to remember any of today. You're not going to remember any of the stuff about me being alive, or anyone becoming an animal. You're going to hand over that footage, right now, and you're going to forget all about finding it. OK?" (1)  
"Yes… Master... Marik..." Mokuba's voice was robotic – it made me shiver, as I remembered the bad old days when I did this sort of thing all the time. Sometimes it was just for fun, or because of some master plan I was executing that required it – but most of the time, I just did it out of boredom.

Mokuba stiffly held out the DVD, and I smiled, taking it and handing it to Duke. "Good boy. Now, tell your guards to drive into some deserted parking lot – I don't care where – and let us out the back of the truck."  
"Yes… Master… Marik…"

Twenty minutes later, and we were on our way home through deserted alleyways – on foot (or paws – I was once again a dog, just in case I was spotted by someone). Duke sighed. "Well, at least the movie was half good. I mean, we only got to see half, so I guess it was half good, right?"  
"I guess." Tristan growled. "Still, it's going to take forever to get back to your place at this rate."

Duke grinned craftily at us both, and I shrank back – his pupils had narrowed into vertical slits, making him look inhuman. He stepped back into the shadows of the alleyway as black fur started growing on his hands. "Well, I suppose we could get back a _little_ faster…"  
I looked away as Tristan took Duke's cue, a dog tail suddenly erupting from behind him with an ugly cracking sound. There was only one person in our little group who could actually make morphing look good–

Speak of the devil, and he shall appear. In this case, a pigeon flapped over our heads.  
–{Duke! Tristan! Marik! We were worried about you guys!}– it gushed, doing a loop the loop in midair.  
–{Especially you, I suppose. Worrying's your job these days, isn't it?}– I thought up at the bird, and it nearly fell out of the air trying to get away from me.  
–{Uh… um, yeah. I–If you say so.}–

A German Shepherd stepped out behind me, carrying a jacket and a pair of sneakers. In my mind, Tristan's voice 'said'–{Relax, Ryo. It's just us.}–  
The kid was notoriously shy – only Tristan was able to talk to him and have Ryo actually stay calm. The teen – well, when he was human, he was a teen – disliked company, and for good reason. You see, Ryo Bakura had another side – and it was because of this that he'd learned to distance himself from other people. Ryo wore the Millennium Ring, which whilst giving him the ability to seal his soul into any object (2), also had another personality inside of it. This personality – a three thousand year old spirit – was highly vicious, with a nasty tendency towards taking Ryo over with no warning. It called itself "Thief King" or something – but since it did respond to Ryo's last name, and it was easier for us to remember, we called it 'Bakura'.

The pigeon bobbed its head, and darted away in a nervous rush.–{Well, uh… Yugi said that something big's happening. We're to meet at Tristan's house in ten minutes.}–  
A black cat slunk out in front of me.–{Lead the way.}–

Twenty minutes later, we were out the front of Tristan's house – since Duke had insisted we stop by his goddamn mansion to get my collar and leash. A human Tristan unlocked the front door. "Ah, come on in!" a voice called from inside.

Ordinarily, that would have made me want to run away screaming – Tristan lived on his own – but I recognized that voice.

I trotted in, a cat, a pigeon, and a teenager built like an ox following.  
–{Well, this doesn't look _too_ odd!}– I said brightly, heading for the living room.  
"Can't you ever come in one at a time?" There were two people on the couch. The speaker was our unofficial leader Yugi Moto, a shortish teen with tri–coloured hair that stuck straight out from his head in spikes. As usual, his Millennium Puzzle hung around his neck – like Ryo's Millennium Ring, it too had an inner personality – but the guy we called Yami was actually a reasonable, if socially awkward, guy. And it sure wasn't for nothing that his official title was "The King Of Games" – he was an absolute genius when it came to any sort of strategy. Yugi ran the Kame Game shop with his granddad nowdays – in between entering card game tournaments and going to school.

"Sorry." Tristan apologized, sitting next to Yugi. I went and lay next to the couch. The cat and the pigeon went out of the room, and a few seconds later I heard the sounds of crunching bones and rearranging organs.  
"Heard ya hadda run–in wi' Mokuba." The American accent belonged to the second person aside from me and Tristan in the room, Joey Wheeler. He was a tall, slender boy with a very strange hairstyle to his golden hair. Honey brown eyes assessed me carefully – Joey hated my guts, and we both knew it.  
Tristan just shrugged –he was the only member of our little group who could bear all five of us. "Hey, relax. Mokuba was pretty close to working out what we were – he suspected we could become animals, but he only had footage of me and Marik. Marik used the Rod – Mokuba should forget anything he said."

"The Rod?!" Joey snarled, leaping to his feet – for good reason. During the Battle City card tournament Kaiba had held in Domino City, I had brainwashed Joey, forcing him to duel Yugi in a fight quite literally to the death – they'd both been chained to a giant anchor, and only the winner would get access to the key which unlocked their chains – the loser would be dragged to the bottom of the ocean. In the end, Joey had managed to break out of my control, and they had both defeated each other. Joey had managed to unlock Yugi's chains, but it had been Kaiba who had dropped Joey's forgotten key into the ocean, allowing the blonde to save himself in a very rare moment of compassion. The duel had caused both Yugi and Joey no small amount of pain… yeah, I'd been… sort of a jerk back then.

–{Hey, relax. I just made him forget us. If he'd told Anzu…}–  
I broke off, as Yugi's face darkened. Anzu was definitely not a good topic to talk about – she'd been one of Yugi's very closest friends, and now… She was a high–ranking Controller – someone who'd been taken over by a Yeerk.

Fortunately, Duke and Ryo came in at that point, saving us from a distinctly awkward discussion. Ryo was pale and shaking, like he always was after morphing – it still scared him pretty badly, I guess. Duke looked a little pale as well, but he strode confidently over to Joey, who just huffed and turned away.I shook my head, gazing at them all. Already, Duke and Joey were arguing over the possible connotations of being a dog (Kaiba's pet insult for Joey). Tristan was between them, managing to keep them from thumping each other, while on the other couch, Ryo was clinging to the armrest, his whole body tilted as far away from the others as possible. Yugi seemed to be trying to calm him down, with appalling results.

I sighed. Our group was just… so _unstable_. Joey, whilst he was best friends with Tristan, and fiercely loyal to Yugi – almost to the point of stupidity – disliked me and Duke, who seemed to enjoy one–upping the blonde, causing further tension between the two of them. Ryo was scared of all of us but Tristan, being naturally very quiet and easily spooked, and to make matters worse, no-one really trusted him when it could be Bakura talking. You just couldn't tell, unless Bakura was making no attempt to hide himself – the spirit did a very, _very_ good Ryo impression.  
Meanwhile, Yami had some sort of fierce enemity with Bakura – the two hated each other like fire hates water. There was just never enough space in the room for both of them, it seemed. I sighed – if it wasn't for the whole saving–the–world thing and Tristan holding us together, Ryo would have fled by now, and Joey would have torn my throat out – possibly Duke's as well, for eyeing up the blonde's sister, Serenity.

A cry of "Shadow Game!" went up from the humans, and I whirled. Game? Tug–of–war? Fetch? The dog knew many games, each far more sensible than the ones I'd played as a human–

Oh.

My tail drooped. A dark cloud of shadows was gathering around Yugi, who'd swapped places with Yami, and a distinctly evil looking Ryo, or possibly a non-psychopathic-looking Bakura. It was impossible to tell whether it was actually Ryo or Bakura – eyes hidden under his fringe, white hair not quite straight up in spikes, but not exactly smoothed down either…

–{Stop that! Both of you!}– I yelled, running forwards, but Yami pushed me back, eyes fixed on Ryo/Bakura. "_Stay out of this!_"  
I stepped back, morphing human as fast as I could. Tristan stepped between the two of them. "You are going to stop this stupid behavior. Right now." His voice was a savage snarl.  
During the momentary hesitation of the two combatants, Duke came over, placing his hand on Yami's shoulder. "Much as I dislike Joey, we have to stop fighting."  
–{Why are we fighting, anyway? We've never fought like this before…" My last few words came out as speech as my head became fully formed. "I mean… Duke and Joey were together during Battle City. Why can't we work together?"  
"Ha! Dat's obvious! Savin' the world from parasitic aliens by turnin' inta animals? Crazy!" Joey tapped his forehead. "We're prob'ly all goin' crazy from da stress."

Yami swapped back to Yugi, who raised an eyebrow as the shadows around him and Ryo vanished. "Hmm. I'd bet on it being the stress. It's barely been the first mission, and…"  
He broke off, and I nodded. We'd all been through a lot in that first mission – we'd fought for our lives, killed. I'd lost my human shape, and I'd had to pretend to be dead… even to my family. Yugi had discovered his granddad was a Controller, and Anzu as well. Tristan had lost his parents to the Yeerks, and he'd been forced to question his morals. Ryo had been forced into a fight to the death, and he'd lost control of his morph's mind, massacring Controllers left, right, and centre – even though he was still a firm believer in good and bad, black and white, still a pacifist. An innocent, flung into war…  
None of us had come out the same.

"Houston, we have a problem." Duke deadpanned.  
And boy, was he right.

Notes:  
1. Not one of the shown powers of the Millennium Rod, but you'd think that if Marik could control someone's mind, and feasibly make them do such things as suicide, then he could also make them forget things.  
Also, in Duelist Vol. 16: Marik (to a brainwashed Jounouchi/Joey): "Soon, this duel will be branded into your memories… forever…" – which implies that Marik can interfere with the minds of his brainwashed victims. In addition, Anzu does not seem to remember what Marik did to her…  
2. And before those Yu–Gi–Oh fans try to tell me otherwise, I refer to the early manga. In that, Ryo was able to seal his own soul into a pair of dice, and arguably into a miniature (though that is disputed).


	10. Ch 9: The Darkness Within

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, Animorphs, or anything else that doesn't belong to me. I only own this story.**  
**Chapter Nine: The Darkness Within**  
**  
MARIK**

After an awkward silence, it was Yugi who took charge. "I don't even _want_ to know what Bakura was doing for Yami to get that angry at him."  
"Quite frankly, n–n–n–neither d–do I." Ryo groaned, snapping out of a long, blank stare.  
"That's besides the point." Duke snapped, stepping back from Yugi. "Let's face it, if we can't work together, then–"  
"–We're stuffed."  
Dead silence. No–one had wanted to hear that being said – I was always the one to say the things that shouldn't be said.  
"What? Seriously, if we can't work together, we're screwed. And guess what, you can't put three of us in a room without someone walking out! Heck, I don't think you softies can even deal with half the things we've done! Tristan's _already_ proved that, and we all know Ryo will probably run away at some stage!"

I expected Tristan to protect Ryo, but instead it was Duke who stepped in front of Ryo protectively, trying very hard to control his own temper. "Marik, try not to get angry."  
"Ooh, worried I'll faint?" I taunted. "Look. You don't have to feel sorry for me. Unlike you, rich boy, I'm actually used to pain."  
He frowned, and the others all looked at me like I'd just grown antlers. "_Faint?_"  
I lost it about then. "Yeah, faint! I'm a friggin' softie! Go on! Feel sorry for me!" I nearly screamed.  
Shadows were curling at the ends of my vision, which was slowly draining of colours. Joey put a hand on my shoulder. "Please, Marik! The last thing we need is–"  
I swung at him in the monochrome, but he just ducked. "STUFF YOU!" I snarled, reaching for his neck–  
And that was when my vision faded altogether, and I blacked out.

**YAMI MARIK**

"_I must say, it's been a while_", I grunted, as I gained control over my host, and found that I was standing on two legs for once.  
"_Again? _ Seriously, how come you're still around?" Yugi groaned, as I examined my host's body for any sign of dog. Lately, I'd been gaining control, and finding I was controlling a dog for some strange reason – presumably some dumb curse Yami had laid on me or something. At any rate, it felt good to be human again.

I eyed myself over. _Hmmm._ I seemed to be wearing the wrong clothes – I was in serious need of a cape right now – but oh well, I had my Rod – I could inflict some serious damage with that, and get my cape later...

A foot tapped impatiently, reminding me that there were actually other people aside from me and my ego. "If you're _quite_ finished…"

I ignored it, exalting instead over my possession of the Rod. Time to see what it could do. "_Sorry, but I need a cape._" I muttered, and pointed it at Yugi, intending to–

"D–Don't!" Suddenly, there was another teenager standing in front of me, blocking my way – a white haired one, this time. With a start of irritation, I noted that there was another Millennium Item around his neck.  
"Hmph." Over his shoulder, I gave Yugi my very best psycho grin, and even showed him a little bit of my tongue, just to keep the psycho impression up.  
Sadly, he wasn't impressed. "Well? Answer the question. How come you're still around?"  
"_I'm a split personality that just got amplified by the Rod. As long as Marik's got some semblance of imagination, I'll be there. Now… Let me say hello to the Pharaoh personally, why don't you?_"  
He folded his arms. "Nope. Not happening."

"Lemme attim! Lemme attim! The bastard, I'll kill'im!" an idiotic blonde yelled, lashing out against his two buddies, who were currently trying to restrain him – I just laughed in his face, at his pathetic anger. This could only be Joey Wheeler, which would make his buddies Duke Devlin and Tristan Taylor – I'd never known anyone who had hated me quite so passionately as Joey. Of course, his anger was still nothing compared to the wrath of yours truly, but he did try harder than most.

…There was a big emphasis on _try_ there. I mean, he was never going to come close to me in terms of hate – I was technically pure, undiluted hate itself.

At any rate, I easily shrugged off the blonde's little hissy fit. "_Very funny, I'm sure. So, 'wazzup', as I'm sure you idiots like to say? I thought you'd be having a nice time in the afterlife by now–_"  
"HOW DARE YA!"  
"My pleasure, puppy."  
"Umm, ahh…. Erm, I wouldn't push it any, ah, further. J– Joey looks like he's… erm… about to b–blow a fuse." The shaky teen who was still blocking my way had now decided I should be _warned_. Having lost any respect for him by this point, I couldn't help but chuckle out loud at his obvious stupidity. Man, he was a wimp if he thought _Joey_ was something to be worried about…  
"I–It's not funny! He'll tear you apart!" The albino seemed a little offended by that. Good, because he should have been.  
I pushed him a little further: "_Ooh, look. An albino shrimp. What an interesting specimen… Hey, didn't I kill you, too?_"

The teen stiffened, then… _changed_ – his hair suddenly spiked upwards, his eyes narrowed and the temperature went down by several degrees in the room. Finally, I remembered his name – Bakura.  
"_You **wish**!_" he snarled, as savagely as he could.

It was evident that he was getting defensive now – one more good push would do the trick. I did my best to look nonchalant. "_Oh well. Nice to know I'm not the only one around here with an idiotic hairstyle._" The teen glared at me – but, fortunately for him, said nothing.

Yugi, ever the logical one, sighed. "Well, I suppose we'll just have to plan with you here, and just tell Marik what we came up with after you've gone."  
Duke shrugged. "What plan?"  
"We'll think of something… uh…"  
"Ah've got an' idea. Firs, we beat up Yami Marik 'til we get Marik back. An' ah'll do da beatin'!"  
I snickered – I couldn't help it. "_I think Marik will be quite hurt to think that you've been making your plans while he's… well, he says 'fainted'…_"

Tristan was quicker to pick that one up than the others were. "Yami Marik, what _exactly_ does Marik know about you?"  
I laughed. "_He's in denial at the moment. Thinks I'm a figment of his imagination, as it were. Thinks he faints with anger_."  
"Man, and I thought he knew all about yo–" Duke began, but I interrupted him.  
"_We can sort that misunderstanding out easily enough… but would one of you mind telling me why on the last three occasions I've taken him over, I've been a freaking **dog**?_"  
Silence.  
"_Come on, kiddies. Or is Uncle Marik going to have to resort to playing….**a little game?**_" I toyed with the Rod, leering and grinning as evilly as I possibly could. Their expressions were _priceless_.

It took a few minutes of this sort of thing, but eventually one of them cracked. It was Duke who sighed, wrestling Joey backwards when the blonde tried to lunge at me yet again. "It's… hard to explain. You really know nothing?"  
"That's right." I licked my chops. "_Mmmm, pain. Man, it makes you feel so… so **energized **when you burn yourself! So great to hear someone else's screams! So amazing when – _"  
"Save the fighting talk for the duels!" Yugi growled. "That is just _sick_!"  
"_No, no! You should try it sometime. I could teach you how to do it right…_" I unsheathed the blade of the Rod and pointed it at the boy. "_Come on, show me the Pharaoh so I can show him what pain feels like! Just for a few seconds – it builds character, I think…_"

Joey sprang from Duke and Tristan's grip, knocking Bakura aside so he could plant himself in front of me. "Ya'll ans'er ta me if ya so much as _touch_ 'im!"  
"Hey!" Bakura yelped, and immediately reverted to his softer, shaky personality. Like Yugi, he also seemed to have two. Kinda irritating, really.  
"_You want me to run you through as well, then? Trying to show me you've got guts?_" Suddenly, the blonde was in a distinctly awkward position. I smirked, advancing on him. "_And boy, have you got guts–_"  
"Marik, will you stop playing your stupid mind games and–" Yugi began, and I couldn't resist correcting him:  
"_That's **Yami** Marik to you!_"

Tristan sighed. "Can we get back on track? Yami Marik – it's a long story, but here's the deal – you can become any animal you touch. Catch: you can only become that animal for two hours or you'll get trapped. You got trapped as a dog – you were lucky some sort of divine head honcho intervened and let you become human for two hours."  
I blinked. "_Well, I knew there had to be an explanation, but that sure wasn't it._"  
Duke shrugged. "Take it or leave it, there's also aliens invading Earth. We're fighting them by becoming animals, and–"  
I laughed. "_And you expect **me** to help you?_"  
Duke, as usual, was exceedingly blunt. "Yup. Marik did, so I'd say you're somewhat obliged to."  
"_Well, I'd have to say that you're wr– Wait. I'm going to have to become a dog after two hours, aren't I?_"  
"Actually, I think you'll find that's 'after one hour and forty minutes'."  
"_Whatever… Hey, do I get to kill things if I fight with you? No card games?_"  
"Yes. Lots and lots – the aliens are parasites who take over their hosts and–"  
"_They **what?**_"  
"Take over their hosts. See, one of them took you over and–"  
I interrupted yet again. "_The thing that had my host – was that one of them?_"  
"Yup."  
"_Hmph. Rudest housemate I've ever had to put up with._" I grinned evilly for my ego's benefit, and licked my chops. "_I'll fight… providing you can get me a nice battle morph. I want shredding power._"  
Yugi sighed. "I don't know how we'd pull it off. You'd have to be a dog, and Kaiba doesn't like dogs –"

"I have an idea." All eyes turned to Duke, who smiled cryptically.  
"Well, go on, rich boy. What is it?"  
"For this, we're actually going to have to work together…"  
"_Fat chance of that happening._" The others glared at me. "_What?_"

**MARIK**  
"Huh?" I got up off the bed. "Wha? Wait, how long was I out for? How'd I get here?" I ran to the clock in a panic. "Three in the afternoon? Damnit, I'm trapped again!"  
"Don't be so certain."

"What the frig is that supposed to mean?" I whirled, to find Duke leaning against the doorway. He was holding what looked suspiciously like a suit and tie.  
"I was wondering when you'd wake up," he yawned, adding slyly: "Also, Yami Marik says hi."  
"Wha? Yami Marik? How? Why? He doesn't exist!" I yelled. "He _can't!_"  
"He does. Try demorphing."  
"Hellooooo? Two hour time limit, anyone?"  
"It's fine. Yami Marik's been demorphing and remorphing all through today. You've got him to thank for not being trapped."  
"Uh–uh. Not happening. He's some imaginary psycho friend, he's not _real_." But I still concentrated for a few seconds… just in case.  
Duke smirked. "Keep telling yourself that, Marik. Now, look at your hand."  
"What about it– Ah, frig!" I yelped, realizing with a jolt that there was far too familiar looking red–brown fur growing on the back of my left hand. "How is that even –Wait, are you pranking me or something? I bet I've only been out a few minutes."  
"Eh, go check the time outside, if you must. Just remember – Duke Devlin never loses a bet. _Ever_."  
"Yeah, righ–"  
"Sorry to interrupt you, but Yami Marik was doing it to me not ten minutes ago, so I'd say I'm entitled. We've got a mission to go on tonight, so hurry – I got lumped with getting you to wear your little outfit, and you _are going to wear it_."

I hobbled to the window as I continued to change, peeking through the curtains. Yup, it was afternoon –  
Bad move. My nose chose that precise moment to extend out of my face, and my brand new snout hit the metal frame with a loud _thwack_.  
Duke winced as I dropped back from the window with a canine yelp of pain. "Ouch. That would have had to hurt."  
–{Thanks for the sympathy}– I thought grumbled, attempting to get back on my weird mix of feet and paws, and failing miserably. My legs were bending and thinning awkwardly, and I fell flat on my belly several times before they would finally hold my weight.–{Care to tell me what we're actually doing?}–  
"We're going to Kaiba's to get you a battle morph. Should be fun."  
–{Great. So, what's with the suit?}– Needless to say, I had a very, _very_ bad feeling about that suit.

Duke sighed. "Yugi's challenged Kaiba to a game, so he's been forced to invite all of us over to his place. It's a full–on dinner party, so I have to wear this." He held up the suit. "You've got something, too – No, don't morph."  
_Uh oh_.–{So… What do I have to wear?}–  
Duke smirked, pulling out a little waistcoat. "That's the fun part."  
–{Oh no.}– I groaned.–{No, no, no. Please, no–}–  
"Oh, boy. This is gonna be fun…" Duke groaned, as I backed away from him, cowering in a corner. "Please, just be good about it. Kaiba won't let you in if you don't wear it. It's for your own good, and–"  
–{Never!}– I thought yelled, holding my head high in a gesture of general defiance. Duke promptly took advantage of that to try and get the waistcoat over my head…

And thus an epic struggle began. The battle raged back and forth across the bedroom, and ended in stalemate – with Duke on his hands and knees, puffing – while I hid cunningly under the bed. At last, the teen stood with a menacing look in his eyes.  
"You _definitely_ asked for it this time."  
–{Forget it. You can't get me to wear it – call it a day.}–  
"I may not be able to, but I know someone who can."  
–{What, you'd call in the vet?}– I growled, but Duke grinned lopsidedly.  
"Nah, it's much worse than that. Do you want me to call in Yami Marik?"  
–{Wha? But… he doesn't exist-}– I began.  
"Oh, but he _does_. I'm sure he wouldn't mind lending a hand." Already, my vision was darkening. My head hurt, and the world in general seemed to be becoming darker.  
A voice that definitely was not mine came from inside my head.  
–{_Why, hello there – What the frig, I'm a dog again?!_}–  
–{Rah! Shut up!}– I yelled. Now I was hearing things, too? _Really?_

Duke looked down at me, as I came out from under the bed. "Ah, sorry, Yami. Marik had to check to make sure he wasn't trapped in morph."  
Wait. I'd never told my body to come out from under the bed! What was going on?  
–{_Hmph. Why **he'd** like being a dog so much, I have no clue._}–  
I was definitely losing control now.–{Look, you don't exist! Get out of my head!}–  
–{_That's not a very nice thing to say, Marik._}–  
With a gasp of pain, I fell over, everything going black. "Tell you what. If you still don't believe me, I'll get some footage off the cameras. Might make things clearer…" Duke's voice faded into nothing…

I woke up, dressed neatly in tux and tie.–{Man, I feel like a train hit me in the back of the head.}– I groaned – then realized what I was wearing. I inspected myself. A little red bow–tie, a tuxedo, fur beautifully styled…–{What the– Actually, this looks kinda cool. James bond dog, sorta.}–  
Duke got off the bed, dressed in his own suit. He carefully petted me, and I closed my eyes in pleasure."Yes. Yami Marik has a nice fashion sense, I have to say."  
–{Look, I'm telling you – Yami Marik doesn't exist!}–  
"He does." Duke said simply, then stood and opened the door. "Come on. The others are waiting."

–{BWAHAHA! Joey, you look ridiculous!}– I giggled, at the sheer sight of Joey in a suit. The blonde went bright red in embarrassment – it was true. Joey looked so uncomfortable and… just so awkward in a suit – in addition, I'd never seen him in one. The combination of his constant watchfulness and the static nature of the suit was a truly awkward one. We were all standing in Duke's driveway, preparing to leave in a sleek black limo.  
Yugi put a comforting hand on Joey's shoulder with a wicked grin. "Don't worry, Joey. From the way Kaiba's been looking at you lately, I doubt he's going to care about what you're wearing–"

The blonde instantly backed away from Yugi as fast as he could, as we all cracked up laughing uncontrollably (with the exception of Ryo, who just looked confused)."Yug'! Not you too!" Joey wailed.  
Ryo blinked, then slowly shook his head. "Do… I even _want_ to know?"  
"No!" Joey yelled, causing the nervous teen to back away, shaking his head furiously.  
"No… uh… no, I don't, then…"  
Tristan sighed. "It's a joke, Ryo. Kaiba's been following Joey around lately. Well, by that I mean he's been sending his hired thugs to follow him around – he does it to every duelist he meets."  
"Which… uh… means?"  
"Well, think about it. You could almost say Kaiba's been _stalking_ him–"

Ryo's jaw dropped in shock, and I gave him a friendly nudge with my nose.–{I think he understands.}–  
We all cracked up again, as Joey exploded once more. "Hey! He's spyin' on me! He's tryin' to find out what makes me Domino City's No. 2 duel–ist! Dere's a diff'rence!"  
"Yeah, because he can learn _so much_ about your strategy from watching you sleep–" Duke began, but Yugi cut him off by tapping on the limo.  
"Can we get going?"  
Duke nodded, and clicked a button. The doors slid open smoothly, electronically.  
"Yes!" Joey practically dived inside to get away from us. Yugi grinned, jumping in after him.  
–{Yugi, I didn't know you could be so _evil_!}– I growled playfully, hopping up beside him.  
He just winked at me.  
"Everyone knows what to do?"  
We all nodded, as Duke pulled the car out of the driveway. We all had a part to play in this, and we definitely didn't want to screw it up.

The car pulled up outside the mansion. The electronic gates swung silently open. We shared a look.  
"All right." Duke murmured, stepping out of the car. "It's showtime."

"Welcome to the humble Kaiba residence!" Mokuba elaborated, bowing stiffly as we entered a massive hall full of servants. "We hope you will enjoy our hospitality – the food will be served in half an hour. Until then, please feel free to enjoy a short game of pool in the games room, or recline in the-"  
Duke raised an eyebrow. "Mokuba, I don't think we're total strangers. Show us your brother."  
Mokuba tried unsuccessfully to act formal and hide a smile at the same time."Master Kaiba is in a foul mood, and will not be–"  
"'Master Kaiba' is _perfectly fine_, thankyou very much!" Kaiba snarled at his little brother, coming down the stairs in a perfect white robe.  
" Now, come along. Dinner will be served after the duel. It's not much, but I suppose it'll be acceptable to you– Wait. What's _that?_" That final statement was accompanied by a glare that could have curdled milk. "Ah, c'mon Seto. 'S jus' Tris's dog."Joey pleaded, but to no avail. Kaiba glared at me.  
"I am NOT having that filthy mutt in my house. After all…" he glanced sideways at Joey here "…I already _have_ one."  
"Enough wi' da dog jokes, Kaiba!" Joey growled.  
"Fine. Now, someone get that dog out of here."  
Mokuba nearly melted when he clapped eyes on me. "Oh, but _Kaiba!_ He's wearing a little tux and everything!"  
"So?"  
"Kaiba, he came prepared. By the laws of hospitality, we're forced to accept his presence in our househo–"  
"I _know_ the damn rules!" Kaiba growled, then finally nodded, gritting his teeth. "Fine. You may bring the dog in, but I ask that he be kept in one of our comfortable kennels during the duel, at least."  
"Bingo." Duke whispered to me.  
"Sounds fair – I'll take him up there." Ryo volunteered, and Kaiba relaxed a little – he was never comfortable with the constant threat of Bakura around. Yugi looked quietly to Duke. Immediately, the teen stepped forwards.  
"Kaiba, I must ask to inspect your footage before I eat. I believe we discussed that over the phone?"  
"Indeed… I doubt you'll find anything, but as you wish." Kaiba grunted. "Mokuba, lead him there." He snapped his fingers, and a servant snapped to attention. "Take Tristan and the dog outside. The rest of you, please follow me. I have already prepared the duel arena for you, Yugi."

Yugi nodded. "Let's go." He looked at each of us in turn, then smiled disarmingly at Kaiba, who shook his head in disgust and turned away.  
"I don't even _pretend_ to understand you people."  
Joey looked right at me and Ryo. "Good luck, Yug'."  
"He'll need it!" Kaiba sniffed, stalking away down the corridor.  
Ryo darted away, motioning for me to follow.  
–{Showtime!}–


	11. Ch 10: Evil On The Prowl

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, Animorphs, or anything else that doesn't belong to me. I only own this story.**

Reply to Guest Review: Thanks for that, it's been added. I'm Australian, so I of course didn't know that the Roadrunner is based off an actual bird.

**Chapter Ten: Evil On The Prowl**  
**MARIK**  
We were halfway down the corridor when Ryo stopped. "Guards. Up ahead. Round the corner, to the left."  
–{How'd you–}–  
He tapped his Millennium Ring. "I can feel them."  
–{So, now what?}– The guards were blocking us from taking the route we'd planned to take to get to the private zoo, and we were running out of time. Duke would soon be in the control tower, knocking Mokuba out and sending a blank video feed to all the cameras, but he wasn't going to be able to keep it up for long.

Ryo smiled savagely; an unusual expression coming from him. "Oh, don't worry. They won't see a thing."  
He started walking forwards, and I had to hurry to catch up. –{Ryo, are you all ri–}–  
"Oh, Marik! I couldn't be feeling any better right now!" Again, that same savage smile, and now his gaze darkened. For a moment, his eyes flashed murder, and I couldn't help but whimper.  
Ryo nearly purred at my obvious discomfort – he bent down and petted me. "Now, stay here and be a good doggy."  
I froze. That was definitely_ not_ Ryo anymore.  
The teen swept around the corner, and I heard the guards yelp in fright several seconds later. Bakura grinned viciously, shoving a few miniatures into his pocket. "_Let's go, pup._"  
I shivered.

A few minutes (and a few more miniatures) later, and we'd arrived at the fence that stood between us and the cages.  
–{Duke! We've arrived!}– I thought at the control tower rising above us. At a window midway up the tower were two silhouettes. As I watched, one of them nodded, then whacked the other right between the eyes.

–{Oh,_ there _y' are! Thaught ya'd gottin los'!}– Joey called from wherever he was. I looked around, but didn't see anyone… or any suspicious looking animals, for that matter.  
–{Where's Tristan?}–  
–{He's north of ya. Tryin' to climb a fence – he's got the guards distracted, well an' truly.}–  
I looked up, but couldn't see any birds.–{Joey, what exactly _are_ you right now?}–  
–{See da cage to yer left? The one with the open cage door?}–  
–{Yeah?}–  
–{ See da rhino?}–  
–{No way!}–  
The rhino tossed its head. –{Hell yea!}–

Bakura sighed. "_Let's move on, shall we? We've got to get you a battle morph, preferably before Tristan gets caught._"  
I blinked. –{So, uh–}–  
Unfortunately, that was when the guards reappeared, dragging an unconscious Tristan behind them. One spotted us, and came running over, hurriedly drawing and pointing a gun at Bakura.  
"What,_ another_ kid? Hey! You! What do you think you're doing?"  
Bakura faced him down with ease. "_What do **you **think you're doing? No–one talks like that to **me**!_"  
The guard aimed his gun – then paled. The ground shook.  
–{Bakura, outta my way!}–  
Behind Bakura, the rhino charged. The teen grabbed me roughly and dove to one side as the beast shot past us, lowering its head. As I struggled to my feet, I caught a glimpse of the flailing security guard flying over the enclosures. Joey stood in front of us, pawing the ground.  
–{Bakura, there's far too many guards for me. You're gonna have to buy me some time, and–}–  
"_No need to tell me. I know._" Bakura growled, getting ready to run. "_Marik, you're going to be useless here, and I'm not picking locks for you. So…_"  
Without warning, he grabbed me by the scruff of the neck and flung me over the fence of one of the cages. "_Good luck._"

I groaned, got to my paws. I'd landed in an enclosure full of floating logs, on something dry and hard. I looked down, expecting to see another log –  
Scales.  
Wait, since when did logs have scales? They only had scales if they happened to be –  
–{Frig!}–  
I leaped off the log, and paddled fast towards dry land at top speed, wincing as I moved my left front leg. The logs were following me at a disturbing pace. As my front paws hit dry land, long dry grass tickling my nose, one log opened wide, revealing teeth and a long snout.

I ran, but it was obvious from the moment the crocs behind me got serious that I wasn't going to make it. The reptile right behind me lunged at incredible speed, jaws wide. It locked them around my leg, and started pulling me back. Pain shot through my leg – it was pure agony.  
–{AHHHHHH!}–  
–{I'm coming!}– Joey yelled, and through a haze of pain, I could hear him throwing his full weight against the bars. Agonizing seconds passed like minutes as he tried again and again, the crocodile now trying to pull me back into the water, me somehow managing to struggle and fight it in a bizarre, one-sided tug-of-war.

Finally, Joey broke through the fence and came rampaging right through the faux swamp, trampling the reptile holding me and smashing through the fence on the other side. He turned, then charged back through the swamp to presumably help Bakura. A tranquilizer dart shot past my head.

–{Run, Marik, run!}–  
My leg was throbbing in pain by this point, but somehow I managed to scramble free of the water, limping onto dry land. I was losing blood fast – I wasn't going to last much longer…

Somehow, somehow, I still had enough strength for one morph. It seemed to take forever, but eventually the pain in my leg dimmed, then vanished altogether. The crocodiles were still uncomfortably close, and I backed away as best I could, moving first on four legs, then on two.

As soon as I could, I made a break for it. I whirled around, charged forwards, through the hole Joey had made, away from the crocodiles, into the cage next door –

–and crashed, slapstick style, into something large and furry. With an awful feeling, I looked up.

The lion was not amused.  
"Ah, frig! WHY?!" I yelled, my temper already rising.

Fortunately for me, the lion just stared as I ranted – evidently taken aback by this bizarre creature who had intruded into its territory.  
"So, _now_ I suppose you're going to kill me? Well, guess what – I DON'T CARE. Go on, eat me. My day just couldn't possibly get any bloody worse, could it? Sheesh, I get away from crocodiles and now _this_! Seriously, what's the damn point if I'm just going to carc it?! Why do I even try? The world's getting invaded by aliens, and I'm going to get eaten by a friggin' lion! Oh, that's a _heroic_death, that is! I can see the tombstone now! 'Marik Ishtar: At least he tried.' Really? And to top it all off, _you_aren't even going to feel the least little bit of pleasure in killing me! My death is for nothing! WHY…"  
On and on I went, my anger growing with every word… until something just snapped.

_Hey, kiddies – Wow, you're human for once!_  
A pause, while my blood ran cold. My head throbbed, and I felt like I was going to be sick. I curled into a ball, whimpering – but needless to say, Yami Marik wasn't interested in my comfort. In fact, he seemed to be enjoying himself. He giggled wickedly, like a small child watching Wil. get his butt kicked by Roadrunner for the one hundredth time (1).  
_Oooh. That's a very messed up situation you're in there… Wait, you ran away from a bunch of crocodiles?_  
"Get the frig out of my head!" I snarled, but Yami Marik wasn't going to listen.  
_Nope. I'm your split personality – much as I'd _like_to get rid of you, I can't. Of course, the same goes for you – pity, isn't it? Don't worry, Uncle Marik'll sort all this out. Just go to sleep, that's it. You're so tired, so very tired…_  
"Don't… wanna… No…" I whimpered. "S–Someone help me…"  
But it was already too late – everything was fading to black.  
Yami Marik nearly purred with delight. _Good boy! _

**YAMI MARIK**  
"_He gets angry a lot, doesn't he?_" I observed, as I took over once again from my idiot host.  
"_Do try to focus. Unless I'm very wrong, you've got far, far bigger problems right now than your host's anger management issues._" I looked up, to see Bakura perched atop the fence, gazing down at me. Behind him, the guards were chasing a rhino and shouting in confusion.

"_That's rather wordy for you, shrimp…_" I murmured, as red – brown fur sprouted on my hands.  
–{ Marik! Bakura! What're y'up ta?!}– Joey yelled. –{I'm running as hard as I can here!}–  
"_Dealing with this mess, of course._" I pulled out the Millennium Rod, and coolly pointed it at the lion. "_You are **not **going to attempt to attack me in the next half hour. In fact, you're just going to stand here for the next half hour. Don't die on me, though – that's not very nice for Kaiba, and I can't acquire you unless you're breathing. A pity – you'd make a great rug._"  
The lion froze on the spot, and I tucked the Rod away as I continued to demorph.  
"_Neat trick._" Bakura commented, and I shrugged what was left of my shoulders.  
"_Works every time. Lions **love **to be told they're going to be rugs in the next life…_"

Three minutes later, and I was back in fur. –{_Interesting._}– I observed. –{_The bleeding's stopped, but that leg's still giving me the best sort of pain every time I move it. I'd say he's broken a bone._}–  
That was when Joey screamed in both our minds.

Bakura glanced over his shoulder, then yawned. "_Ah. The rhino's getting shot at again… I guess I'd better distract them again._"  
–{_Useless as always, eh?_}–  
He flashed a rare smile. "_Yep."_  
The rhino must have heard us. –{Hey!}–

He vanished, and there was a click in the cage lock – presumably, he'd just unlocked the door.  
A moment later, I saw him again – a blur moving like lightning towards the thugs surrounding Joey. Two went without a sound, the third went with a gurgle.  
Instantly, the other guards spun and saw Bakura. "Get him!"

–{_Observe: Killing power at its finest._}– I purred, surveying the animal before me from head to paw. Perfect muscles rippled under a fine coat of fur as it breathed. A beautiful mane, free armour protecting its neck. Long, sharp claws–  
"_Yami Marik! Make it quick!_" Bakura grunted, fighting off what guards he could. Even I could see that he would get overwhelmed eventually. Joey was useless – in midmorph, rhino blood spattering the ground around him.

I nodded, then carefully acquired the lion. Taking a deep breath to steady myself , I surveyed the scene one last time. In front of the lion's cage, Bakura appeared to be battlingat least ten members of Kaiba's security, a groaning Tristan regaining consciousness whilst being restrained by two more a little distance away from the struggle. The white–haired boy had somehow gotten hold of a knife, and was dispatching each guard with relative ease and swiftness – but more men were charging in for everyone he dropped, and he was tiring fast.

I was tired as well – morphing really takes it out of you. So does having to save your host every three minutes, of course, but I still concentrated on my lion.  
–{_I'm on it._}– I thought at the other two, as I felt the changes begin. I tapped one expanding paw impatiently. –{_Come on!_}–

Joey swore, as more guards poured in. Several caught sight of him, and pounced, holding him down. "Help!"  
While I waited, I treated myself to the sight of Bakura in action. The teen let out a snarl that would have made a lion back down, and snatched one man, shoving him into the path of the others. He ducked and wove after that, tripping and shoving as raced to Joey's side. In one inhuman leap (2), he was in the air, coming down on the guards with his knife out. "_You wanted help? You got help._", he growled, helping the blonde up and getting ready to face the men again – and at last, I was nearly done! I bounded out of the cage, even the mane grew around my neck.

–{_Slaughter time!_}– I yelled. The call caught the guards off balance – and by the time they'd blinked, I was on them, racing low to the ground then leaping up and –  
SLASH!

Claws out, I tore into their bodies. –{_Yes! Die!_}– I cheered, reveling in the messiest, most painful deaths I could inflict as I performed them. The lion was a weapon, an instrument of torture, and I felt its instincts merge with my own. The _power!_ I let out a roar of triumph. The men in front of me shivered in response – it was _beautiful!_Amazing!

The men made another mistake – they all froze in terror. Human instinct can do that to you – something primal in them feared the lion, feared the strength….  
Feared _me_.  
I can't even describe the rush of pleasure I felt with the feeling of being feared and hated once more, and I immediately thanked the guards with claws and teeth…

Every one I mutilated in a different way. I threw their pathetic organs around, shook them like rag dolls. To me, it was a game – they fled and backed away, and I leaped after them, slew them. I tore into their flesh – it had been a while since I'd done that to someone, delicately pulled them apart and watch them scream until they screamed no more…

–{Oh, _yes!_}– I cheered, as I finally downed the last guard, clearing the attackers away from the pair – and was pleased to note Joey's fear, Bakura's disgust.  
–{_Come on, morph! Let's kill 'em!_}– I yelled, running after the fleeing remanants–  
"_Yami Marik – ah, no! Wait_–"  
WHAM!  
I looked up, dazed. What had stopped me? Nothing could overcome a lion!  
…Except _maybe_ that.  
–{_Oh, that's overkill!_}– I moaned. I'd just about had enough of this. I'd gotten the host out of the dumb situation he'd been in, mission accomplished. There was nothing to be done now. I drew back, allowing Marik to take control, forcing him to…  
And as I left, I couldn't resist scaring him a little.  
_You'll be paying for this time…  
_I smirked as he shivered. This really never got old, did it?

**MARIK**  
–{Ugh… Wait. What… the _frig _is that?}–  
No – one answered my question.  
I tilted my head. Odd, my eyes seemed to be seeing rather well in the dark – an eerie twilight cast by the flickering lamps of the zoo…  
Too well.  
I looked down at my too–big paws, felt a whole new level of strength course through me. The dead giveaway: There were dead bodies lying around my paws, each one carefully mutilated.  
–{Oh, no. He's been here again, hasn't he?}–  
Again, no answer… Except, of course, for the one inside my head.  
Yami Marik.

You'll be paying for this time…

I shivered. Why didn't that jerk ever let up?

"HALT!" The voice booming from the behemoth in front of me made me get my attention back on the task at hand. It was an oddly shaped thing. Almost like a plane, or maybe a–  
"I AM SETO KAIBA, AND I ORDER YOU TO–"  
**CLUNK!**  
Muffled swearing from inside the vehicle, followed by the voice yelling "LIGHTS!"  
All around the zoo, floodlights switched on, revealing the thing to be...

Joey's voice came from behind me. "A TANK? HAHAHA! Oh, dat's funny!"  
"Think. Do you _really_want to piss off Kaiba when he's got a tank?" That could only have been Bakura, judging from the way Joey backed down with uncharacteristic swiftness.  
–{Remind me again. How did I get from near death in a lion's enclosure to here, in front of a tank, with you two here?}–  
"I'll explain later." Bakura muttered.

There was no doubting it was Kaiba's tank – the thing even had a Blue–Eyes White Dragon stenciled on the sides, a turret shaped like the famous creature's head, and a little Blue – Eyes White Dragon plushie on the bonnet. With a creak, the hatch opened, and a six–foot tall brunette stepped out. He clutched a deck of trading cards in one hand, and a briefcase in the other. His cloak seemed to defy gravity, flapping in an invisible breeze, and he looked prepared for anything… even though his eyes screamed murder at me and the other two.  
Seto Kaiba.

"_What_ is the meaning of this?" he snarled, looking from me to Bakura to Joey. "I did not give _you_ permission to leave the dueling field, Wheeler. Nor did I give you leave to come here. I _certainly_ didn't give Tristan permission to go running around climbing fences, nor did I ever approve Duke here to attempt to knock out my little brother. Only _I_ am allowed to abuse him, I'll have you know!" He sighed. "Ah, at least the dog's gone…"

"Hey! Whadabout Bakura? "  
"I don't _talk_ to madmen, Wheeler. They aren't worth my time."  
Duke sighed. "Come on, Kaiba. Can't we just call it peace?"  
"No!" Kaiba snarled. "Aside from all of you somehow managing to break all the rules of hospitality… _especially_you, Wheeler... Yugi beat me in a card game _again_! And he wasn't even wearing the puzzle! And he even took the freakin' **GOD CARDS** out of his deck!"  
Yugi coughed. "Uh, Kaiba? Have you ever considered that maybe I'm just… you know…?"  
Bakura raised an eyebrow, finishing Yugi's sentence for him. "Better than you?"

There was a silence for a full six seconds, then Kaiba bellowed:  
"**THIS IS UNFORGIVABLE!**"  
Yugi blinked in innocence – then stiffened. "Um, people? Where's Tristan?"  
Joey swore. "Where is he… Uh, I thought he was with _you._"  
Bakura shrugged. "I, for one, have no clue."  
Duke just facepalmed.  
Kaiba nodded towards a stretcher, having instantly regained his cool. "Over there, Wheeler – or is it "ober dere" for you? I don't _speak _American."  
"Hey!"

I sighed as the others raced towards the stretcher – really, there was no need. Tristan looked bruised, but all right to me. He desperately tried to mouth something at me, then tried to imitate putting a bow in his hair. I just stared – when he finally realized that his attempts to communicate were failing big time, he shook his head in frustration, then murmured something to Duke. It was all the others could do to keep from laughing, as the raven haired teen did a beautiful curtsey, then proceeded to flutter his eyelashes at me. –{Are you saying I'm not straight?}– I snarled, and tossed my head, turning away before he could mouth an answer.  
–{Sheesh. Some people…}–

"Just _what _are you doing?" Kaiba growled at Duke, who laughed awkwardly and found something interesting to look at on the ground at top speed. I glanced up at the CEO, as he turned away from his rival –

And there she was. Standing right behind Kaiba, glaring at me.  
Brown hair. Innocent blue eyes, now narrowed in suspicion as she observed me, summed me up, evaluated me.

Anzu Mazaki.

I resisted a strong urge to tear out her throat – and trust me, it was a strong urge.

Anzu, Yugi's childhood friend.

Anzu, with her ceaseless friendship speeches that really got on your nerves after a while.

Anzu, with an alien slug wrapped brain –the high ranked Yeerk Estreen–721, to be precise.

Anzu, who after Battle City had pulled me to one side. Had claimed I should be her friend – or something, and there was something she wanted to show me. I remember shrugging as she pulled me away, her fleeting vicious grin in response. She began talking away about the magic of friendship or something… but I was a little distracted by that point.

See, Anzu's friendship speeches are pretty long and drawn out. They're also quite hard to understand… especially when your head is being shoved into a Yeerk Pool. To be honest, I found that I was too busy feeling the creature under the surface work its way into your skull to be worried about the heart of the cards. And when the thing wrapped its body around my brain, trapped me in my own body, the_ last _thing I wanted to be hearing about was how much good I'd be doing for my friends by becoming this.

And the whole time, she just stood there, smiling as I screamed and thrashed away when I worked out what was going on, and she _lectured _me about the "power of friendship" or something – so that Yugi and his buddies never suspected a thing.  
_A silent takeover…_

Anzu's lip curled in disgust, and I glared right back at her. _I'll get you someday!_, I wanted to shout at her… But I couldn't. That would give me away. If Kaiba or his guards were Controllers, they'd shoot me in an instant. And then, the others…

That was when I caught Kaiba staring at me. "What are you?" he murmured, stroking my fur. "Tame as a dog…"  
"I don't think that's a dog." Anzu said crisply, striding towards me. Kaiba began running his fingers along my jaw line, ignoring her.  
"It must be a robot to be able to sit there like that. There's no way a real lion would do that." He examined my paws. "Amazing."  
Anzu sighed. "That's not a real lion."

Kaiba just laughed, harshly. "No. It's valuable research, you see? Imagine if I could make a Blue – Eyes White Dragon like this! I'd be invincible!"

In the silence that followed, I heard Yugi's sharp intake from across the pathway. Only Kaiba – the guy with the ego the size of a small moon – would have the guts to say something like that. From the same direction as the intake, Tristan was muttering under his breath: "Marik, _please _convince her you're a real lion…"

I remained silent, frantically scanning the lion's instincts for an idea of what I should do.  
_What would a real lion do? _

The lion evidently couldn't understand my question – the answer I got was of pictures of the animal biting and mauling.  
_So… I guess that means you should bite him?_ Yami Marik asked.  
–{Stoppit!}– I snarled at him.

Meanwhile, Kaiba opened my mouth with ease, muttering to himself: "Hmm. No wires. You're an absolutely fascinating robot… Maybe I should take you to the lab… How'd you like that?"  
And _that _left me with a very awkward choice to make: Should I bite Kaiba or not?

_C'mon. One little lick?_  
–{I am _not _doing that!}– I grated, trying to push Yami Marik to the back of my mind. –{You shouldn't even _exist!_  
_Want me to prove I do?_

I tried to think logically and ignore the psycho. On the one hand… paw, the others would kill me afterwards – on the other, Kaiba wasn't going to believe I was a real lion if I didn't. He wouldn't let me go.  
And Anzu, staring at me with murder in her eyes,_ certainly _wouldn't. She'd–  
"Hey, lion! If you think you're a doggy, shake hands!"

Fortunately, I didn't have to choose .  
You see I'd forgotten that there weren't just two minds along with mine in this body – Yami Marik and the lion's. There were, in fact, _three_ other minds.

See, the dog mind knew those words, and reacted with such a burst of enthusiasm and HAPPY that it usurped my control. It wagged my lion tail, and worse still – it offered Mokuba a lion paw. Kaiba looked surprised – but only for a second, because in the next instant…

"There!"Anzu shoved them both aside, and motioned to the guards behind Kaiba. "Andalite! Get it!"  
Mokuba dove out of the way instantly, but Kaiba fumed, towering over the angry Controller with a look that could have curdled milk. "Miss Mazaki, just _what _do you think you're doing?!"  
Anzu's face was twisted in rage, and she pulled out a Dracon Beam. "Outta my way, or I'll shoot!"  
Kaiba sniffed. "So you can shoot _my _valuable find 'til it's dead? Certainly not!"

Her finger tightened on the trigger, but I was faster – in a split second, I'd moved to knock Kaiba out of the way. The CEO drew himself up with defiance, putting himself between me and Anzu a second time. "What is _wrong _with you, Mazaki?" he demanded. "Shouldn't you be making friendship speeches?"

I had to take a risk here, or we were going to have a dead CEO on our hands. –{Kaiba. Stop. Yes, it's me, the lion talking. Don't ask questions – she's going to shoot you.}–  
I glanced at the guards closing in on us. –{We need to run.}–  
Surprisingly, the brunette took it very well – he just nodded, and whacked Anzu in the head with his briefcase. A moment later, he was straddling my back.  
–{Hold on!}–  
"Stop! Andalite!" Anzu screamed as we fled, the security men chasing us.

I'd dreamed about being chased by chicks… but never as a lion. Never by a parasitic zombie–girl waving a Dracon Beam. And never, _ever _by Anzu, with Kaiba riding my back, under gunfire. Ever.

Needless to say, this one went firmly in the "Nightmares" box.

Kaiba pointed towards the Blue–Eyes White Dragon tank. "Get us over there."  
–{Why?}–  
"It's the safest you can be in there."  
BANG!  
–{ARGH!}– I screamed, feeling a bullet go clean through my leg. I staggered, and then Anzu was there, kicking me in the side.  
–{Marik! We're coming!}– Yugi practically screamed in my head as I fell…

Notes:  
1. Wil . E Coyote and Roadrunner are Looney Tunes characters from a lesser known cartoon, _Roadrunner_. Generally, each episode would run for ten minutes or so, during which Wil . E Coyote(a bipedal cartoon coyote/wolf thing) would get blown up/thrown off a cliff/ run over/ killed in some inventive way at least once every minute, in his quest to catch Roadrunner (a caricature based off an actual bird, also called the Roadrunner).

2. Yami Yugi did that in his first appearance in the manga, leaping straight up from a normal standing position, to a height far higher than Joey's head (he actually _floated _above the thug he was facing down at one point, and Joey's head only came up to the man(Ushio)'s chest at the time… so…)

If he can do that, then as a being of a Millennium Item, Bakura feasibly can too – even more so, as his spirit is that of a thief, who's presumably used to such antics.  
We don't ever see Bakura ever fight anyone in a physical fight – but we do see that he basically obliterates six guards by just _pointing_ at them when attempting to get to Yugi during the DDM arc of the manga (we don't see what happens during the fight!)– which indicates that he's either very fast, or his shadow powers are downright terrifying. For the purpose of this series, he uses a combination of his early manga power (soul sealing) for smaller numbers of guards, and very fast, Assassin's Creed style acrobatics that strain his host's body to escape larger numbers – Ryo, of course, would never hurt a fly.  
––––––––––––––––––


	12. Ch 11: On The Run

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, Animorphs, or anything else that doesn't belong to me. I only own this story.**  
**Chapter Eleven: On The Run  
****  
****MARIK**  
I woke up on something cold and hard, a low hum filling my ears, and a dull ache ringing in my head. I tried opening one eye, then closed it again – it was pitch black, and I couldn't see a thing. Concentrating, I decided to focus my senses. Regardless of whether I was dog or lion, the animal's hearing and smell would be enough to tell me something about where I was–

And that was when I realized that something was very wrong. My senses were dull – too dull.  
Frantically, I tested my voice. "Am I… Oh, no."

My voice rang in the darkness – little more than a whisper, but it was definitely a human voice. I groaned – that could only have meant that Mister Non–Existent had taken me over… again.  
"I don't even wanna know what happened this time. He's just way too sick for–" Unfortunately, it was at this point that I sat up – and whacked my head on something hard and metal with a clang. "Owww!" I yelled, falling back and hitting my head on the floor. Immediately, I scrambled to get up again, but there was a sudden weight on my chest that prevented me from doing so.

"Stay _still_, Yami Marik! Sheesh, dat makes the tenth time!"  
"It's me, Marik!"  
"Oh… Sah–ry."  
A torch clicked on in the darkness, and I shaded my eyes as the teen sitting on my chest shone it in my eyes.  
"Hey, I'd like to retain my eyesight! Get that thing out of my face!" I snarled, snatching the torch away from him.  
"Watch it, or dat won't be all yer get in da face!" Joey returned, reclaiming the light in one quick movement.  
"What did I do wrong this time?"  
Silence. Joey looked away.  
"C'mon, let me up. This is just awkward." I pleaded, but Joey didn't budge. "Please?"  
Silence, then the boy clicked off the torch. "Hey, what are you–"  
I was cut off by the jarring impact of a fist meeting my nose.  
"AGH!" I lifted a hand to my face, and felt a warm, sticky liquid there.  
"Ah've bin wantin' to do dat for i_so long now…_/i" Joey whispered in my ear, then got off my chest. Slowly, carefully, holding my nose, I bit back the pain and sat up. It was uncomfortable in here – I was cramped between a low metal ceiling, and very hard floor that rumbled under me.  
"What was _that_ for?!"  
"Ah don't like ya, ya bastard!"

How dare he! My hands automatically curled into fists, and I wanted to punch the blonde and cry at the same time. Normally, I could have brushed it off, but now? I had no clue where I was, it was dark, I felt exhausted, I'd just banged my head, and now my face had been beaten in! I reached for the Rod – this time, I'd brainwash that idiot. And I'd make him jump off a cliff. Or have him get run over by Kaiba's tank. Heck, make him suck up to Kaiba, and force him to remember _every single moment of his humiliation!_ For six weeks!  
That'd show him.

"Joey, now's quite frankly not the time!" A different voice, calmer than Joey's, but strained with pain.  
"But–"  
"Think. Do you _really_ want Yami Marik tearing you apart?"

Slowly, reluctantly, I felt Joey get off my chest… then poke me hard in the ribs. "Demorph."  
"Do I _have_ to?" I mumbled. "I don't like being a bloody dog."  
"What was that?" the blonde snarled, and I felt powerful hands grip my neck in the darkness. "You don't wanna help us? We need your hearing, dammit! You wanna be selfish and–"  
"Joey, _cool it!_" The new voice came again. "If he doesn't want to–"  
"No! Yugi could be in danger, and this idiot is–"  
"All right, all right! I'll demorph!" I complained, and concentrated, fur crawling up my neck and over my shoulders. Joey immediately released his grip.

Remembering countless falls from attempting to demorph whilst in anything other than a crawling position, I maneuvered onto all fours as best I could, legs already itching from the fur growing up them. I couldn't see in the dark, which was a small relief – I wanted to pretend that I was still human, at least for a little longer, and the hum of the engine was drowning out all the usual bone–crunching and gut–moving noises that morphing made. I closed my eyes in bliss. Being a dog was all very well and good, but to be honest, I really did prefer being human. Two hours was too short, sometimes…

But the pretence didn't last for long – the changes were getting harder to ignore. After the fur had seemingly finished growing down my chest and up my legs, it stopped. My ears were the first real part of my humanity to disappear after that, and the morph played out so that within the first forty seconds of the changes beginning – _click._ On came the ears.

One of the best things about being a dog? The hearing. Man, it was spectacular. I mean, my pathetic human ears could only really tell that there were slight vibrations under me – and I'd had to strain to tell that over the hum of the engine.

But I could hear now that the vibrations under me were being caused by the gears of an engine, and by wheels – or perhaps tracks – moving over tarmac. Heck, I could hear some idiot tooting his horn outside, and a dog barking, and someone's labored breathing coming from the corner of the tank. It was incredible!

Unfortunately, I also had a very, very clear idea of what was happening to my body. For instance, I could hear, in perfect quality, the noises my spine made as, vertebra by vertebra, it started to stretch into a tail – the sloshing of organs as they reconfigured themselves into better positions, the noises my hands made as the bones in the fingers thinned, then dissolved altogether.  
Yes, it was absolutely disgusting to listen to. What tipped you off?

I was about mid–demorphed when Joey decided to click the torch back on, pointing it around the place I'd ended up in. It looked like it was just the three of us – the blonde resting his back against a wall, and Tristan slouched in one corner trying to look tough, despite the fact that he was evidently close to passing out, and no–one else in sight.

For some bizarre reason, my head hadn't really changed yet – beyond some patches of fur spreading up my cheeks, and my nose flattening into a wet, black one – and I was still capable of human speech. I decided it was best not to look at the rest of my body (judging by the expressions of Joey and Tristan, I highly doubted that it was a pretty sight), and made conversation instead.  
"What's going on? Where are we?" I demanded.  
"In a mess, that's where!" Tristan muttered under his breath, then to Joey: "Joey, turn off the light, will you? I could really do without being given nightmares for the next six weeks."  
I raised one eyebrow. "You know, I couldsccchhhrrrrr…"

My vocal chords decided that now would be an excellent time to drop out on me, and the rest of my words were lost in a canine growl. Joey obligingly turned off the torch, and I waited another minute, listening to the cracks and snaps of bones, the thumping of my new tail on the metal floor, and trying not to scratch my gums as new teeth grew and multiplied in my mouth. My spine snapped, and centre of balance abruptly shifted, as I became more dog than human. A series of cracking noises came from my legs, and I felt no longer cramped, comfortably standing on all fours now…

A dull scraping noise from deep inside my skull, and my face shifted outwards into a canine snout, fur rushing over my head and replacing my hair. Finally, I could use thought–speak.  
–{Tristan? I could really do without being given nightmares for the next six weeks, too – it still doesn't answer my question. So, tell me now… where am I? How did I get here? And also, do you have a ball?}–That last question hadn't meant to come out – but the dog mind had bubbled up inside mine once again, and it wanted to play.

A few final cracks echoed in the long silence, before Joey replied to me, his voice oddly detached. "We're in da underbelly of Kaiba's ego–strokin' tank – an' it's prob'ly not da right time ta be wantin' ta play, Marik… "He switched the torch back on, and I looked around.  
–{How'd I get here? I don't remember anything after I got shot in the leg.}– I glanced around.  
–{And where's Ryo, and Duke, and Yugi? Heck, where's Kaiba?}–  
The blonde snarled with impatience. "Are ya deaf? Use yer hearin'! We need ta find da others!"

I focused my ears, turning them this way and that; but I didn't hear any voices.  
–{No, I can't hear anyone…}–  
A sudden thought hit me. –{Why didn't either of you bother morphing dogs, or something with better hearing? You both can, after all.}–  
Tristan laughed. "Yes, but we've been trying to restrain Yami Marik the whole time. If one of us had morphed, he probably would have as well."  
–{Okay, let's try a different question: How did I get in here, anyway? Last I was conscious, I was a lion and shot through the leg. Bleeding heavily, if I remember rightly.}–  
"Well, Yami Marik got you through. You know how he loves pain, so he remained conscious… but then… uh… he got a little… shall we say, _excited_… and…well…"  
"Put it this way: Kaiba won't be happy when he wakes up."  
–{Remind me again: Why would that be?}–  
Joey coughed. "Well. Yami Marik caused… ah_ bit_ of troubl'..."  
"And when he says 'a _bit'_, he means 'a _lot_'…"  
"Which would be why Yugi threw you in here with us. He'd hav' taken care of Yami Marik himself, but… well, he's got…_ other thingies_ on 'is mind."  
–{Such as?}–

Tristan answered that one with a grin. "Such as trying to outrun a convoy of vans– and possibly several helicopters as well – in a tank. Whilst steering the wrong way, at high speed through heavy traffic, I might add."  
–{Not like Kaiba to let Yugi do something like that, though. I mean, he doesn't do dangerous things.}–  
Joey smirked. "Aside from dat one time wit' teh motorbike, y'mean…"  
"Or the time he jumped out the window of his office…" Tristan continued.  
"Or the time he attacked dat thug wiffa tradin' card in the helicopter, and wouldn't shut up about it…"  
"Or the _other_ time he did that…"  
"Or–"  
–{OK, so he _does_ do reckless things. But still: How did we end up in this situation? What went wrong?}–

Tristan looked pained "Well. Kaiba was out cold the whole time, and Yami Marik… can't really drive a tank. And he was acting really weird. I mean, weirder than usual - like he was drunk or something. I think your pain was doing that – he hadn't bothered to demorph, and he was losing blood. So, he was half–conscious, and a lion as well… though he did demorph, later on in proceedings… and went human at some point… and then he was somehow managing to commandeer the tank, and trying to outrun Anzu… and sort of… well…"  
"Flatten'd parta Kaiba's mansion, end'd up onda freeway, an' we nearly all got kill'd. Yugi came 'round den." Joey finished, with characteristic bluntness.  
"And he definitely wasn't happy."  
–{Thankyou, Captain Obvious.}–  
"You're welcome."

Joey fidgeted. "So, are we gettin' outta here or not?"  
Tristan winced as he tried to move. "Yeah. Just… Gimme a moment. I need to rest, and Marik's been through a lot today."  
For once, the blonde wasn't about to be stupid. "Awright, den." He smiled at Tristan. "Guess ah'm tired, too."  
The brunette snorted. "Idiot. You never know when to stop."  
A sly smile. "That'd be why ah've got ya, right?"  
"Yup. I'm the one that saves your butt."

I was impatient – and a little jealous, too. I mean, they both had each other, Yugi and Duke as well – even Ryo, to an extent. At any rate, they'd all known each other far longer than I'd ever known them (which would be about nine weeks now) – and let's face it, I tortured them when they first showed up, and they'd fought me. Ultimately, I was in their little club because of… unfortunate circumstances.

I fumed. Not long ago, I could have said that I had _one_ friend – Odion, who was like a brother to me – but now, I'd lost even him. Everyone except five equally idiotic teenagers thought I was dead now – and I hadn't even gotten to say goodbye to Odion! I was a human, but forced to become a dog every two hours – and my funeral was going to be held next Tuesday.  
They had each other…  
I had no–one.

I thought–coughed.–{Sorry to interrupt your little heart–to–heart, but can we move on? We need to at least get out of here.}–They both blinked, startled – they'd forgotten that I was there.  
–{Good. Glad you realize that.}– I 'said' coldly, and Joey glared daggers at me.  
Tristan reacted with shame – he hung his head. "Marik, I'm sorry–"  
–{It's fine.}–  
"It's _not._"  
–{Fine, it isn't! We need to get out of here! Can't you _see_ that?}– I reined in a sudden burst of fury – but only just.

_C'mon, c'mon. Give in, tear out their throats! You know you want to!  
Shut up! _I shoved Yami Marik away, quelling my rage as fast as I possibly could. He was _not_ forcibly taking me over again!

Tristan paused an instant, prepared to say something – then I distinctly heard Yugi yelling at the top of his lungs.  
"GET DOWN!"  
–{Get down, both of you!}–

All three of us dropped on our stomachs, braced ourselves – and there was a loud ibang/i. The whole room spun, and I guessed that the tank had rolled over. Bushes and branches snapped in my hearing, and then there was a dull iclunk/i, as we miraculously landed the right way up.

The tank's engine coughed and spluttered to start, and then Yugi was yelling again.  
"Guys! We need to get out of here!"

I groaned – Tristan had ended up on top of me. "We'll have to talk about this later", he whispered, getting off me.  
–{Later.}–  
"So, whaddawe gonna do now?" Joey wondered, rubbing his wrist and wincing.  
–{Step One: Check to see who's actually in here with us. Step Two: Get out of the tank. Save Kaiba, _if we have to_. He might not need saving, if he's already out.}–  
Tristan's brow furrowed – then he yawned. "So… Step One. How do we do that?"  
I thought about it for a moment. –{Joey, stay as you are. Tristan, morph wolf.}–  
"Why wolf?"  
–{Because I'd say that wolves have better hearing than dogs.}–  
"An' why don't I get to morph?"  
–{You don't have a wolf morph.}–  
"Hmph."  
"Remind me again… How are we going tomanage Step Two?" Tristan wondered.  
–{Well… We'll just have to see about that when we get to it. I'm making this up as I go along.}–  
He snorted. "Typical."  
Tristan shrugged, sending Joey a warning look. "Better than nothing."He closed his eyes to concentrate, and the blonde turned off the torch again.

After about a minute, Tristan's bones started to make some seriously nasty noises. I winced at a particularly loud _snap_, thinking of the time I'd broken a guy's neck using my Rod – it had made a noise exactly like that.  
Joey giggled, then apologized instantly. "Sorry… Jus' sounds sah…_freaky_ in teh dark, dat's all."  
–{You have no idea how freaky it _feels_. I mean, I can feel myself changing, I can hear it, but I can't see it.}–

Two minutes of nightmare noises later, and Tristan's voice came into my head: –{Okay, I reckon I'm done.}–  
"What do you hear?"  
A pause.  
–{Hmm… Sounds like Kaiba and… I don't recognize that voice. Kaiba's trying to get that bloke to explain Anzu to him, and just about everything else as well.}–  
–{Actually, I heard Yugi shout at us before, to get down. It's probably him in morph}–, I replied coolly.  
"Yug'?" That made Joey sit up, and turn the torch back on again – miraculously, it was still working.  
The wolf nodded. –{That sounds like the most likely explanation.}–  
Whaddawe waiting for, den?! He could be in danger! Look, I morph rhino, then we just rip open the door and–"  
–{No. Think.}– I didn't want to rush headlong into this, but Joey obviously had other ideas.  
"Think? _Think?! _Dere's no_ time!_"  
–{What if Kaiba sees us?}–  
"Who gives a–"  
The wolf let out a warning snarl. –{Quiet, both of you! I need to listen!}–

We both shut up – but sadly, the news wasn't good at all.  
–{Bad news. Kaiba's woken up, and he's coming down to interrogate us now. Whoever's up there is refusing to talk, and Anzu's people are probably going to catch up with us sooner or later.}–  
–{How'd he know we were down here?}–  
–{Kaiba had thermal sensors installed down here, so he can tell if there's been any stowaways.}–  
"So, now what?"  
–{I say we freak him out – we've got nothing to lose, after all. Joey? Start morphing to dog – just hide behind Tristan, until you're not recognizable as Joey anymore.}–  
The wolf smirked as best as it could. –{Scaring Kaiba? Oh, you are _evil!_}–  
I grinned a doggy grin in reply. –{I know.}–  
Joey laughed, and turned off the torch. "Y'know, ah reckon ah might like this plan… Awright, ah'll start."  
"Start _what_?"

Heels clicked on metal, and Seto Kaiba strode into the room.  
"Who's down here? What's going on?"  
THUNK!  
"Ah! Stupid low doorway!"

There was a loud _crack_ from behind me, and I heard Kaiba's breathing speed up. "What was that?"  
Tristan growled, and the CEO hesitated an instant before he laughed. "Very funny." Material rustled. "I know what you're trying to do – but Seto Kaiba doesn't scare easily! You're out of luck – because!"

A light flicked on, and I blinked, trying to adjust. Kaiba was crouched in the low doorway, triumphantly holding a torch. "Aha, where's your prank no–"  
He stopped when he saw Tristan.  
"What on earth?"

There was another series of cracks and crunches, and Tristan raised the volume of his growling. I joined in, and Kaiba started backing away. "There's… there's a _wolf_ down here." He gulped. "And… that's not all…" He snarled a challenge into the darkness. "You! What's going on?"  
There was another loud _crack_, and I heard Joey growl.  
–{Awright, ah'm nearly done. Migh' as well geddout.}–  
I would have smirked, if I hadn't been growling myself, and if I'd had a human mouth to smirk _with_. –{So, here's a new Step One: Terrify Kaiba into letting us out.}–  
–{That's simple enough.}– Tristan replied.

Joey growled loudly, I let rip with a savage snarl, and Tristan took a single pawstep forwards.  
"All right! I'm going! I'm going!"

He tried to slam the door shut on us – but Tristan lunged, wedging himself in the gap. Seto's boot lashed out, catching the wolf in the side – and I launched myself over the wolf's back, right at the CEO's face. My jaws found Seto's nose, and instantly the teen reeled back with a yell, tripping over Joey as he staggered about blindly. I didn't hang around to watch – as soon as I hit the floor, I was up and running again, claws scrabbling madly for grip on the smooth metal floor.  
–{Go, go, go!}–  
"STOP THEM!" Seto bawled, seemingly forgetting in the heat of the moment that he didn't actually _have_ anyone with him.

–{Come on!}– Joey roared, and a Golden Retriever blew straight past me as I struggled for traction, followed by a wolf moments later.  
"What's going on down there?" Yugi called down, and Joey put on an extra turn of speed.  
–{Yug'! Ah'm coming!}–  
–{Hey, wait for me!}–

We bolted down the short passageway, and found a ladder at the end, leading to a trapdoor. Another three minutes, and two teens scaled the ladder as fast as possible, climbing into the cabin. Joey didn't climb up right away – he waited for Kaiba, calmly knocking the CEO out in the dark, before climbing up himself. Once Joey was out, I locked and bolted the trapdoor down, just in case Kaiba woke up – only then did I look around.

Given the cramped underbelly, the cabin was surprisingly spacious for a tank – more like a room than a real tank's cabin. Then again, it was _Seto Kaiba's_ tank – so maybe I shouldn't have been surprised. Sunlight filtered through an open hatch in the top – from what I could see, we'd crashed into a large tree that was leaning against someone's back fence.  
"Oh, great – so we ran _someone else's_ house over, too."  
"Yug'!"  
"Joey!"  
I pointed to the sky above. "Visser Three!"

_That_ killed the little reunion pretty quickly, as they all looked up to watch the ominous black spaceship fly overhead. The Yeerks hadn't spotted us yet – so hopefully, we could get away from the tank before they found it.

"Did Kaiba see you?" Tristan asked urgently. "If the Yeerks were to infest Kaiba, they might-"  
"No, he didn't." Yugi's features blurred for a moment, and he grew several inches. "See?"  
I blinked – there was now a tall, nondescript man standing in front of me right in the spot where Yugi had been. He shrugged, and shrank back into a short teenager."Kaiba thinks it's just a bunch of thugs who took over his tank."  
"So, uh… Now what?" Tristan wondered, and all eyes instantly went on Yugi.  
"Now? We get out of here. No birds, though – they'd spot us, start shooting."  
" I'd say dogs for you three – I'll go with ferret."  
"You acquired a _ferret?_"  
"Well, my granddad has one..."  
"And why exactly would your granddad have a ferret?"  
"Well, he uses it to test out the mazes."  
"He _what?!_"  
"Let's just morph, shall we?"  
Which is exactly what we proceeded to do.

Anyone watching would never have believed it – a Golden Retriever carrying a furry rat-thing, a Pharaoh Hound, and a German Shepherd, all jumping out of a Blue Eyes White Dragon shaped tank, only to be pursued by a massive black spaceship twenty seconds later. The thing swooped down on us like some sort of massive bird of prey.  
–{Ahaha! Run, foolish Andalites! RUN!}–  
TSEEW! The ground near my left front paw was vaporized by a lazer.  
–{Dey're shooting!}–  
–{What the frig else did you think they were going to do, make you a sandwich?}–  
–{There's scaffolding to our left – head that way!}– Yugi yelled. –{They can't see us once we're in there!}–  
–{Wow, you think?}–  
–{Easy on the sarcasm, Marik!}–  
TSEW!  
–{Just run!}– Tristan roared.

Somehow, we made it to the scaffolding in a mad dash of lasers and paws, and the spaceship was forced to pull up and away from us.  
–{I'll hunt you down! GET THEM!}–  
There was a dull thump behind us, then another and another.  
–{You know what? I don't even wanna know what that is.}–, I grumbled.  
Needless to say, Tristan glanced behind him automatically. –{Not good. They're sending in Hork–Bajir.}–  
–{Bladed, six foot tall, bipedal lizards, y'mean?}–  
–{Yup.}–  
–{Damnit!}–  
–{See, I _told_ you I didn't wanna know!}–  
Yugi took charge. –{We need to get out of here, and fast. Head for the alleyways – Tristan, you go right, Marik, you go left. Joey and I will go straight ahead. We'll meet you two at Tristan's place, all right?}–  
–{Awright, den. Let's scatter!}–

I ran left, out from behind cover. Unfortunately, the spaceship shimmered into existence above me. –{THERE! Get him!}–  
TSEW!  
I zig–zagged madly across the building site. I needed to find cover, and fast.  
But where?  
TSEW!  
Aha! To my right, I spied neon signs, glass doors… and more importantly, a roof!

I raced for the shopping centre, dodging people as best as I could, trying not to run over small children. A security guard tried to grab at me, but I danced out of reach, running for the glass doors as fast as I could.  
"Andalite!" yelled a little old lady, leaping out in front of me. No time to stop – I just put my head down and kept on running.  
–{Yaaaaaaahhhh!}–  
I crashed straight into the lady, and she went down, her legs shoved out from under her as I went charging across the pavement, somehow still running for those doors.  
–{Fools! Get him! I'll kill all of you for this!}–  
The doors slid open, and I blew through, dodging shoppers and Controllers alike… until I smelt food.

Chicken, to be precise.

–{FOOOOOOOOD!}– The dog instincts took over control, and I shot over towards the Red Rooster. In one leap, I'd cleared the counter, landing neatly on the other side. The chicken was right there, in a little brown paper bag – so I snatched it and kept on running.  
–{Sweet!}–  
"Hey, who let the dog–" A staff member came running out of the kitchens, and I slid through the door right before it closed, racing past ovens, scrabbling doors open, and finally bolting into the car park, to hide under a ute from the angry staff.

The smell from the meat was tantalizing, but sadly I still had things to do before I could claim my prize – I mean, I could hear Controllers yelling, staff bawling at each other, Visser Three venting his frustration in my head, and what sounded like the manager of the whole place wailing about what on earth they'd done _this_ time, and didn't they how much a chicken cost these days? Obviously, now wasn't a really good time – they'd come out to the car park sooner or later, and then it would be a dog–hunt. They might even bring the dreaded man with the dog cage, and the treats, and the tranquilizer rifle!

Wisely, I focused one last time – on my eagle. The harder you work for something, the better it is.

_Damn, that chicken had better taste good…_

––––––––––––––


	13. Ch 12: Breaking Point

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, Animorphs, or anything else that doesn't belong to me. I only own this story.**  
**Chapter Twelve: Breaking Point  
**  
**MARIK**  
I flapped my way through Tristan's open bedroom window and dropped on the bed, exhausted. –{Wow. I am _officially_ never doing that, ever again!}– I complained bitterly, demorphing to dog after a moment and–  
–{Whoa!}–

That chicken smelled so, so very tempting. It was _calling_ me!  
"ARRRARRRRRARRRARRR!" I grabbed the paper bag in strong jaws, and started shaking it from side to side. A few drops of oil landed on my nose, and I dropped the thing to lick them off. The taste sent me into a total, frenzy – I had my whole head stuffed in the bag in a second, pulling out the poultry and shaking it even harder. Bits of dismembered chicken went everywhere, and I chased them, ripping them into even smaller bits, chewing on the odd sultana. I let out a wild whoop of thought–speech, and a whole bunch of joyous barks. It was wonderful!

–{CHICKEN!}– I was completely out of control by this point, but I was too giddy to care. This was the best moment of my whole existence! I did a little dance of victory, romping around the room, jumping up on everything before finally picking up a nice drumstick. _  
_I leaped up onto the bed, and started randomly mouthing the pillow in pure excitement.  
–{And now… We EAT the chicken!}– I giggled, and–  
"Marik?"  
The door opened, revealing Joey – whose jaw had dropped as far as it would go.  
–{Look! Chicken! Chicken everywhere!}– I crowed, and a little voice in my head called out:  
–{And for _once_, it wasn't me!}–  
Joey blinked, then his eyes narrowed. "Oh, ah'm gonna _kill_yer!"

SWOOP!  
I was under the bed in a split second, quietly nomming on my drumstick.  
–{Mmmm….}–  
One sneaker tapped in annoyance. "'Scuse me…_dear _Marik… but wouldja be so kind as tercum'out fr'm under da bed?"  
–{Mmm, lemme think about i– Nope.}– I didn't even want to think about what Joey might do to me if I were to come out. He'd certainly be less lenient than Tristan would have been, had he found me first…  
The blonde crouched to my level, and his eyes narrowed. "Well, ah asked nicely. Cum'out, right_ now_."  
–{Never!}–  
Honey eyes glittered with malice. "Last chance."  
I tensed, preparing to flee. I could have come out from under the bed… but the blonde was _challenging _ me. To back down would be to run away from his challenge – and I was desperate not to do that!  
And so it was that I'd thought the words at Joey before I even registered that I'd sent them.

–{Make me, Blondie.}–

Silence – a silence that scared me far more than an angry response would have. For an instant, Joey's muscles tensed, and he looked like he was about to dive under the bed and try to get me. Instead, there was a pause…

And then: "Dat… wouldn't be _good_ enough for you, would it?"  
Joey walked out, closing the door – and since it opened inwards, it meant that I couldn't get out of the room just by scrabbling at it. That worried me for a moment – but then again, who cared? I had chicken, that was all I needed – and there was no way Joey could get me while I was underneath the bed. I ate greedily, sliding out carefully from under the bed to snag a win and pull it back under with me. Oil dribbled down my chin, and Yami Marik made a sound of evident disgust.  
WHAM!  
The door slammed open, banging against the wall with a tremendous crash – and a full–grown Golden Retriever came bounding in. Without further ado, it lunged under the bed after me, jaws snapping.  
–{Eeep!}– With a thoroughly undignified whimper, I fled the scene – but the other dog was hot on my heels. It chased me over furniture, under the couch, up onto the kitchen bench via the chairs, and then –  
A small, furry thing came scuttling out in front of us. –{What are you _doing_?!}–  
Small.  
Furry.  
Thing.

_Oh, no, no, no!_ , my personal voice wailed in my head, as two dogs shared distinctly evil looks. Small furry things were fun to chase, and if you could get one and shake it, they made noises…  
SNAP! The Golden Retriever took the initiative, and was the first to lunge. With a squeak, the furry thing dived away from us – and another voice came into my head.

–{Oh, god! Joey! Marik! Snap out of it! Please! The dog mind's got you both!}–  
I ignored the voice, instead choosing to circle right, hoping to cut off the furry thing's escape, while the Golden Retriever continued to drive it forwards.  
–{Help! Help!}–  
Suddenly, I was ripped off the ground by a strong hand. "Down, Joey! Bad dog… human… uh… um… Bad boy!"  
This confused the dog mind. _Joey? Huh?_  
–{Tristan? Thank heavens!}–  
_Tristan?  
_"Joey! Snap _out _of it, you idiot!"

The Golden Retriever froze mid leap, twisting around in the air to avoid the furry thing and landing flat on its stomach.  
–{Wha– What teh heck wassi_doin' _? Wait… Furry thin'… Oh, man. Yug', please tell me dat wasn't you…}– The big dog cowered in embarrassment, its tail drooping between its legs.  
–{It's all right, Joey. You didn't hurt me.}–  
_  
_Something clicked then, and memories came bubbling back. –{Tristan? Yugi? Joey?}–  
Tristan dropped me unceremoniously onto the hard wood floor. "Nice to have you back, Goofy."  
I landed badly, snout first, letting out an involuntary whimper. –{Owww! Hey, watch it!}–  
Tristan didn't seem to care – he turned away, and bent to the ferret's level. "Are you all right, Yugi?"  
–{Erm… Ah, yes. I'm fine.}–

Tristan looked from me, to Joey, then back again. Suddenly self–conscious, I guiltily licked a few crumbs off my nose – not that it did much good. I was pretty much covered in chicken pieces, grease, stuffing, and oil.  
He sighed. "There had _better_ be a good explanation for this."  
–{Ah, at least lemme demorph first. Dis dog mind's… hard to control.}– Joey grumbled, and Yugi joined in;  
–{If one of the other two comes through the window as a bird of prey… Well, I don't wanna get eaten.}–  
I took the chance instantly. –{I think I'd prefer being human myself, thanks very much.}–  
Tristan leaned against the wall. "Fine. Demorph first, then we'll talk." He glared at me. "And _you're_ cleaning up my room later today. I know what you did."  
–{What?}– I asked innocently, and the brunette raised an eyebrow.  
–{All right, all right...}– I mumbled, and we hurriedly left the room.

–{Now look what you've gone and done!}– the ferret complained in the corridor. –{Tristan's in a huff now, and–}–  
–{Hah, it's not like he wasn't in a terrible mood before!}–  
–{Marik, kintrol yerself– or ah swear ah'll-}–  
–{ You'll _what_? What can you do? You punched me in the head, back in the tank, and a fat lot of use it did!}– I snarled, my hackles automatically rising up.  
–{Ah'll hit yer a hundred times fer dat!}–  
–{What, with your paws?}–  
–{Why, ya liddle–}–  
–{Marik, try to keep calm–}– Yugi began, but I interrupted him.  
–{Why should I?! WHY SHOULD I?!}– A low growl rumbled in my throat, and I whirled on the ferret, intending to grab it in my jaws and–

**WHAM!**

The Golden Retriever ploughed straight into me, sending me flying. I struggled to my paws, but then he was on me again, his full weight pinning me down. He glared down at me, and bared his teeth in a snarl, while I thrashed and struggled.  
–{Stop. Ya don't know what yer doin'. Yugi is _ma_ friend, ma _best _friend, and you do _not_ attack him!}–  
–{You think I'm gonna give up? How _dare_ you!}–  
–{Marik, he didn't mean-}– The ferret tried to come between us, but the Golden Retriever snarled once more, forcing it to back away.  
–{Yug'… Stay outta dis.}–  
–{J–Joey?}–  
–{S'_ma _fight!}–  
–{No! Stop it! Stop it!}–

–{Eat this!}– With a ferocious growl, I kicked out with both hind paws, digging into Joey's underbelly. He was quick, rolling to one side and coming directly at my neck – but I was nimble, already on my paws and lunging forwards. My teeth sank into the retriever's leg – a direct hit. With a yelp of surprise, the bigger dog pulled back, and I pressed home the advantage, rage fuelling my every action. It was all a blur after that – it was just me and Joey, twin blurs of snapping jaws and flying paws – one a deep red–brown, one white, each lunging, snarling, circling…

I don't remember which of us started changing first – but very suddenly, I was human, and so was he. The only thing I could hear was the sound of my own heart pounding like a hammer, as we eyed each other up in silence. I lowered my stance into something more aggressive. He tensed, brought his fists up in front of him. Sneered.  
"Give up yet?"  
"Never!"

I lunged, but he was ready, dodging and swinging back. I ducked under his strike, and went for a swipe with the Millennium Rod – but he stepped sideways, and then back, out of my reach.  
"C–coward!"  
"Say dat again if ya _dare!_"  
"COWARD!"  
I lunged, he lunged – and then Yugi was in between us.  
"S–Stop! Both of you!" A small palm met my chest, the other meeting Joey's. I blinked – Yugi was crying, though I had no clue why.

Joey shook his head, backed down. "Yug'…Can't ya just… Dammit, stay _outta_ dis!"  
Yugi was as stubborn as ever. "No. You're my _friends_!"  
The blonde's eyes flashed murder, but eventually he turned, and walked away. "We'll pick dis bakkup lay–ta. You jus'_watch._"

I stood there as he strolled back down the corridor, torn. He was _running away! _And I hadn't executed my revenge yet – I _needed_ to get him back for punching me, for what he'd said. The fact that I hadn't was torture.  
And yet…. Joey was so _strong_. He had _friends_, people who would help him. I could _make_ people like me, but it wasn't real.  
_And that's the problem, isn't it?  
Shut it!_, I snarled back, but he ignored me._  
Aww, poor liddle Marik. So very alone…_  
_Go away!_

My adrenaline rush abruptly ended, and I leaned against the wall for balance, suddenly feeling tired. After all that, I'd still lost the fight – Joey still mocked me. And I _would _get him back.

_Let me help you._

Pain flooded through my body. I struggled as gamely as I could, but I was no match for Yami Marik in this tired state. I clutched my head, whimpered.  
"Marik? Are… Are you all right?"  
"It's… it's _him._"  
Yugi frowned. "Yami Marik?"  
_Come on, now. Don't be so stubborn. I just want to help…_  
"No…" I whispered. There was no telling what Yami Marik might do.  
_Poor little Marik… All so alone…_ His words were cutting into my very soul, into my last reserves of strength. I bowed my head, preparing to relinquish my hold – it had been stupid to fight.  
_Never mind. I'll be here for you… Your special other half…  
Forever…  
_  
The cry that came from my throat was without words, a yell of protest.  
_No! Stop it! I won't let you–_  
Inside my head, I heard cruel laughter. _Too late, little fool.  
Stop! _I'd let my guard down – and now I could feel him surging through me, trying to take control. I bit back a yelp of horror, and just barely pushed his presence back.  
_Now, who should I kill first? Any requests?  
_I tried to warn Yugi, but I was fast losing control."Get… get away… he'll…_Give me one good reason why I shouldn't annihilate you!"_ I gasped in pain – he'd temporarily taken control of my voice. "Yugi… Run."  
"No. I'm staying right here."  
Yami Marik wanted to attack right then and there, but I ordered my body to stay still. I was shaking now, huddled in a ball – only barely in control.  
"Don't–_make killing you so easy. Come on, gimme some entertainme–_no…"  
_Why do you still fight? It's pathetic.  
Because…  
There is no reason. Give up._  
"Marik… Please – I don't know if you can hear me… but please…" A small touch on my shoulder, a light in the darkness I was slipping into.  
"Yug–"  
"You're my _friend. _Don't go… I worked so hard to get you back last time."  
"Y–You did? _Of course you didn't!_"  
With a great effort of willpower, I opened one eye, to find Yugi crouched in front of me. He smiled. "Yes. I did."  
" I _trust_you, Marik." A tear trickled down his cheek. "Please… Trust me."

The Millennium Puzzle flashed, and a searing pain went through my head. The tug of war abruptly ended, and I felt far more in control than I had been a few seconds ago. I lay there a few minutes, waiting until the pain had fully died away until I moved. Slowly, unsteadily, I got my feet. I leaned against the wall for balance – I felt exhausted.

The boy bowed his head, refusing to look at me. "Look, I know you don't like Joey, but we've got to try and work together – we can't risk fighting like this. I mean… We're a team. Someday, Joey might be the one who gets to choose whether or not he saves your butt."  
I snorted. "Yeah, rig–"  
"It _could_ happen!" Yugi's voice was like iron. "It could happen to any one of us! We could get _killed!_ Or… Or worse. You've _been_ a Controller, Marik – you know what it's like, having no free will, no control! Do you want to go back to that?!"  
I stood there, stunned, and Yugi looked a little embarrassed. "It's… It's my granddad… He's… You know."  
"I do know."  
Yugi's granddad was a Controller, and there wasn't anything he could do. If he'd tied up his own grandfather in the basement and starved the Yeerk out of the old man's head… the Sharing would be almost certain to get suspicious. Unfortunately, Yugi's granddad was an important figure in the organization, a high –raking Yeerk. He'd definitely be missed…

There wasn't much else to say – after a long silence, the teen's shoulders hunched and he turned away. "Well… Let's go back."

There was a muted silence as we came back into the room – Joey simply turned away, and I refused to meet Tristan's questioning look. Yugi shook his head, then ran his fingers through his hair.  
"What just happened…"  
"It was nothing. A one – off dustup", Joey lied.  
"Tristan told me about what happened in the tank. You two just can't keep on fighting like this!"

Joey opened his mouth to make an angry response, but Tristan elbowed him hard and he shut up. The brunette kept his voice level. "We need to find Duke and Ryo. That's the important thing."  
Yugi bit his lip, glanced at Joey, then glared at me. "But… Someone could get hurt."  
"That's why I'm not coming." My voice was hollow.  
"Marik…?" Yugi's eyes narrowed an instant, then quickly opened back into that innocent look he always wore. I shrugged, trying to appear casual.  
"There's a… a bit of a mess in Tristan's bedroom."  
Tristan stared at me for a long time before he spoke. "The chicken?"  
"Yeah."  
The brunette though about this for a moment, then spoke slowly, deliberately. "Are you sure that's it?"  
Joey folded his arms. "Huh. Not ta be… rude… but Mahrik's… not really known fer helpin'."  
"How would _you_ know?" Rage built up inside me. "It's not like you're my _friend_ or anything like that."  
Yugi blinked and took a step away from me. "Hey, wait a m–"  
"Shut up!" That netted me a stunned silence, and now I could say everything I'd wanted to say for so long now. "I'm sick and tired of doing what you want. I don't wanna be a dog every two hours, just so you idiots can drag things out with fail after fail!"  
"Hold on–"  
"I've had enough of you bossing me around and saying that we can't go to the Yeerk Pool. I'm sick of not being allowed to kill things because blah blah it's not moral blah. _Unlike_ you idiots, I happen to have my own agenda. Things around here are gonna change!"  
"Marik, lis–", Tristan tried, but I was in full rant mode by now. Yami Marik surged, and there was nothing I could have done to stop him taking control – but to my surprise, he didn't take my body over. Instead, we thought together, acted together – something rather unusual.

We walked over to Tristan, leaned right in close. "No. You listen to _us_, Mister Peace Keeper. _We've got a revenge_ – no, _two_ revenges to carry out tonight. _And if you're not with us, you're _in the road_._"  
That made him shudder – then Yugi grabbed me by the shoulders. "Which one are you? What are you planning?"  
Yami Marik allowed my teeth to sharpen into canine fangs as I smiled. "Be _afraid…_"We moved like lightning, pinning Joey against the wall on the opposite side of the room. "_Especially_ you."  
The blonde wasn't impressed, brushing us aside with a snarl. "Wha' da heck is _wrong_ wif ya?"  
"Ohhh…_That was __a_ bad move for you, _even by your _standards..."  
We put a hand on either side of him and pressed him back against the wall, glaring into those self–loving, conceited eyes of his. "You _and me. Tonight_. No mercy."  
"Which one?"  
It was Yami Marik who spoke for us both. "_Both of us_."

And then I was – sorry, we were – gone, stalking back up the stairs to clean up the mess I'd made earlier. The bedroom door made a satisfying _bang_as it slammed behind me, and after a few minutes, I heard the front door bang shut. Presumably, the others had gone to discuss their plans on how to deal with me, out of my canine hearing range. I shrugged – after all, I didn't need to hear what they were planning.

My victory was assured already.

Tonight, I'd get my revenge on that idiotic blonde. Perhaps I couldn't brainwash him with the Rod, now that I'd done it once before – but I could certainly tease him with it. And I had the power to become all sorts of creatures…in fact, I could knock out Tristan, morph into him, and then attack Joey!  
_Yes! Imagine how **that** would feel!  
_  
It was the perfect plan – Joey would be humiliated and embarrassed, and might even refuse to fight his "friend" – which would let me pummel him. If he did retaliate, he'd be left with horrible memories anyway – and besides, I could always run, morph lion, and come back to hurt him again…  
_Brilliant!_  
Laughter bubbled up inside me. I could do all sorts of wonderfully nasty things to dear Joey – and his friends as well, come to think of it. I was going to get my revenge for real this time!  
And it would be beautiful…_  
_––––  
**DUKE**  
Since neither of us actually considered it a good idea to try and kidnap the CEO of KaibaCorp, then following it up by trying to abduct a tank, Ryo and I stuck together. Somehow, the boy had managed to stay impressively – uncharacteristically – calm, and so we hadsimply walked out of the Kaiba mansion during the fuss that the others had managed to cause. We'd been waiting in Ryo's flat ever since, waiting for the phone call that would have told us what the heck everyone else was doing.

One flaw with that plan: In their infinite wisdom, none of my brilliant comrades actually considered _ringing_.  
"Duke… How long now?"  
I sighed, drumming my fingers against the armrest of the couch in boredom – Ryo was getting more and nervous by the minute, and it was setting me on edge. A glance at the clock on the wall told me that it was eight pm. "Ah, It's only been forty minutes. I'm sure they'll ring soon."  
"Sure?"  
"I'm sure." The silence that followed worried me, and I glanced over at the white – haired teen. He looked paler than usual for some odd reason, and seemed to be saying something to himself. "Hey… Is something wrong?"

He blinked, startled – then turned away, refusing to meet my gaze. "No… no, Duke." He stroked a cord around his neck, but said nothing.

I closed my eyes, letting images flicker through my mind as I sifted through how much I knew about Ryo. He seemed to be a total contradiction – most of the time, he was shy and gentle, kind and generous. But then… there were times when something ugly had raised its head, where I'd caught a glimpse of a horrible thing – such as forty minutes ago. I shivered involuntarily, remembering that familiar face twisted almost beyond recognition, its eyes full of malice, a cruel smirk playing across its lips. I'd been seeing that face more and more frequently since I'd ended up in the construction site, and it worried me. Ryo was reckless and unpredictable like that – with him, any carefully planned strategy could easily fall apart–

"Ah! D–Duke!"  
The boy's voice rang shrill with fear, and I opened one eye, wondering what had startled him. As it turned out, it was something pretty major.

"What the–" I jumped up off the couch.

Even though it was a good five hundred metres away, Ryo's window offered a lovely view of the uncloaked spaceship soaring over Domino City, silhouetted against the moon. As I watched, it dived, fired – once, twice – then rose higher into the sky, shimmering out of existence.

"Oh, no. No, no, no." I blinked. Had the ship been chasing the others? What was it doing?

There was a strange mumbling from the corner, and I turned around.  
"Hey, are you all righ–"  
I stopped dead, as the boy cried out in pain, then his whole body jerked like he was having a fit or something.  
"Whoa!" I grabbed his shoulder to steady him as he dropped to his knees – and it was like a switch had been flipped. One second there was this shy, vulnerable kid I felt I should be protecting, and the next a confident, cruel thing looked at me with a brutal viciousness in its eyes, and pushed me away.  
_"I'm going to find Yugi."_ The voice radiated command – it was the sort of voice I'd expect from Kaiba, not Ryo.  
"Ryo…?" I hesitated – but a cold sneer was the only response I got, as the kid shrugged off his jacket, kicked off his shoes. He crossed the room to the window, and undid the latch.  
_"Time to fly."_  
It took me a few seconds to work out the meaning of that. "You mean–"  
_"Yup."_ He yawned, stretched. _"Sheesh, hurry up already."_

I sighed. On the one hand, I didn't really feel like morphing, and I could have just called my men and gotten them to search for those idiots. But on the other hand… Ryo was definitely going from the looks of things, and I felt that I needed to protect him somehow.

The pale teen glared at me. _"Come on!"_ Grey pigeon feathers were already rippling across his back and chest, and to my surprise he admired them a moment, his face breaking out into a smile. _"Ah, finally!"_

_At least if I'm with him, I'll be of some use._

And with that final thought in mind, I closed my eyes, and focused on my crow.

As it turned out, we'd been searching for _Yugi_ while he'd been looking for _us_. We'd been on the opposite sides of Domino City from each other at one stage – it was simply dumb luck that lead Yugi into a mid–air collision with me. I probably could have avoided it if it had been daytime – but crows have appalling night vision when it comes to avoiding fast moving objects in the sky.

–{Ahhhhh!}– I yelped, as we both went spiraling downwards in a blur of feathers.  
–{Duke! Is that you?}– The larger bird managed to distangle itself just before we hit the ground. I flared to kill my speed and landed – _just_.  
–{Yugi?}–  
–{I found you!}– The kestrel let out a cry of triumph, and a pigeon landed next to me on the sidewalk. Ryo gave one last unsettling chuckle – then suddenly he was all innocence again.  
–{Y–Yugi? Where am I?}–  
–{It's all right.}– I comforted. A kestrel landed in the branches of a tree overhead.  
Yugi sounded relived. –{Thank goodness I found you guys! We need your help – we've got trouble.}–  
–{What sort?}–  
Yugi hesitated, and instantly I knew it was very, very bad news. –{Well, it involves Marik…}–


	14. Ch 13: New Blood

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, Animorphs, or anything else that doesn't belong to me. I only own this story.****  
Chapter 13: New Blood**  
**TRISTAN**  
–{Ya sure yer gonna be a'right, Tris'?}–  
I would have shrugged, if I'd had shoulders. –{Hey, if anything happens I'll let you know.}–  
After Yugi had found Ryo and Duke, we'd all ended up at Ryo's place, planning what to do about Marik and his psycho split personality. The main issue was that we weren't quite sure which one we were really dealing with – so their strategy was apparently impossible to predict. Joey would be staying the night with Yugi for protection – for there was no way Marik would try morphing in front of Yugi's grandfather. Ryo and I took two hour shifts to guard the house from the outside, whilst Duke and Yugi took turns to morph battle morphs in Joey's room, just in case Marik somehow managed to get in...

At first, nothing happened. I morphed, waited, demorphed, swapped with Ryo, waited again.  
After two shifts, Ryo rested with his back against a tree, having just demorphed from his owl form. I immediately closed my eyes to concentrate, but a light touch on my shoulder stopped me. "T–Tristan… Wait."  
I opened one eye. "What is it?"  
"I… mean… Well, it's not like M–M–Marik to… uh… w–wait like… um, this. It's been s–six hours."  
I opened both sides, and stretched. "It has."  
"T–Tristan… I d–don't think a–anyone knows this… b–but… I–I know why he's w–waiting."  
I blinked. "You do?"  
The pale teen nodded furiously. "Yes. Tristan, he d–doesn't n–_need_ to c–come."  
"Go on."  
"H–he knows… that at a–any t–time… he can just… uh… t–take my… my body. At Battle City… "  
"I know.", I murmured softly, putting a comforting arm around the boy. "It'll be all right…"

But then Ryo looked at me, and I could see the very real fear in his eyes. "And… Tristan… H–he can take you, t–too… You've been living w–with him, he probably h–has… touched y–you with the… the R–Rod…"  
It took a few seconds for this to sink in – I just stared at the kid. "Oh, no…", I whispered to the darkness. "No, no, no…"  
_Any time he likes, he can just take us over._

**DUKE**  
It had only been six hours, and Joey was already pacing with worry. "What if he's not coming? What if he decides to come at me through Serenity?" He stopped. "She could be in real danger, couldn't she?"

Yami frowned, and touched his lip – one of Yugi's habits. "_True– but we can't leave the house. We have to stay together, or he'll find some way to get at us._"  
"'Den we go all together to get Serenity!"  
Hiding under Yugi's bed, I shifted my lithe body ever–so–slightly. –{If I may offer a suggestion…?}–  
Joey yawned. "Yeah?"  
–{Send Ryo over to Serenity.}–  
Joey let out a hiss. "Ryo? Alone? Duke, arya _crazy?_"  
–{Excuse _me_, princess, but–}–  
"Ah'm notta princess, Cat–boy! Ah'm a–"  
–{Who are you calling a–}–  
Yami blinked and slid off the bed, coming between us in less than half a second. "_No, wait… Duke's right._"  
"What?! Yami, are ya sayin' that I'm a–"  
"_Of course not! It's just that Duke's plan is sound. Ryo is a potential weapon for Marik; thus Marik will not touch Ryo unless he absolutely has to._"  
"A… weapon?"  
–{Remember Battle City? If Marik can control Ryo once, he can do it again.}–  
Joey's rage abated as quickly as it had come. "Oh… So, can we get goin' now?"  
I winced – hard to do when you're a cougar, by the way. –{We could be playing right into his plan by doing this–}–  
"Eh, if Marik really wanted to kidnap Serenity, he'd have done it by now." Joey glanced over at Yami. "Right?"  
"_Right._"  
I thought frantically. _What is he waiting for? What does he need us to do before he will attack? Is it leaving Ryo alone, or…?_  
Yami interrupted my thoughts. "It's not much of a plan, but it's the best we've got. Tell Ryo to fetch Serenity…" He paused, chewed his lip; "…Alone… No, actually. Duke, you go with him… Just in case."  
–{And Tristan?}–  
Another pause. "He can keep watching the house – Ryo won't be long." I nodded, and sent out the message._  
Please, please let this work...  
_––––––  
**SERENITY**

_Dear Diary,  
How do I put this? The past few days have been a total mess. I've found out so many things, things I never knew – things I never should have known, that no–one else can know. Not even my own brother can know those things, and it hurts so much to hide them from him – I used to enjoy his company, now I die a little on the inside every time he opens his mouth.I smile and laugh at his silly jokes… but really, I just want to bury my head in his chest and scream at him to save us all. I want to get on my knees and beg him to protect me, fight for me, just like he did before._

Only, then… Horrible things would happen to me, I'm sure of it. He's wrapped up in all of this, but I don't know how or why… Or which side he's on.

When he laughs, is he really laughing? He cannot be innocent and clueless, for he is hiding something from me – I can see it in his eyes, the way he refuses to look at me when I ask him if he thinks aliens exist, and he pretends that they don't. Does he fight some secret battle every day, holding his own against the invasion? Is he even in control of his own body – or has he too fallen slave to the Yeerks? There's some strange sort of wall between us these days – we used to be so very intimate with each other, but now… Now, we both guard secrets, and they're destroying us.

Diary, I don't know what to do anymore, but I can't ask for help either. I can't trust anyone, I can't talk to anyone… Except Mai…

How much longer can I hide?  
  
My vision blurred with unshed tears.  
_  
Someday, they'll find me. I know they'll find me… And then it'll all be over. Me. Mai. Maybe Joey. Anyone else involved in this pitiful resistance, that tiny glint of hope for humanity. Gone. We'll all be like Anzu, living out our days under the control of a new mind… Screaming, lashing out against it, but it'll all be too late._

Diary… What do I do?  
_Maybe I'll just run away. It would be so, so much easier than any of this… But then, where would I go? They're everywhere, everywhere…  
_My brain began to panic at that point, and I choked on tears, broke out into loud crying. Tears fell on the page, smudging the letters._  
Everywhere…  
I can't… get away…  
Trapped…  
_  
"Serenity?" The sharp scent of Mai's perfume touched me; and a hand fell onto my shoulder. It turned my head, and suddenly I was staring into a pair of startlingly purple eyes., filled with concern. "You can tell me. Is it… Joey again?"  
I swallowed hard, nodded. The grip tightened instantly, and Mai Kujaku turned to read my diary easily over my shoulder, her beautiful yellow locks brushing the paper. I didn't care – I needed her to see this. "It'll be alright."  
_Mai. The only one I could trust in all of this. Before I'd started writing, we'd been talking about the blue box that I found in Joey's room, and the little black box Mai had picked up at the construction site…  
The things that started this whole mess.  
_  
"But Mai, he's _keeping_ something from me! I know it!"  
I waited for the comforting response, but it never came. Before Mai could answer–  
DING DONG!

"C–Coming!" I blurted out, trying unsuccessfully to hide the sobs. I couldn't really think straight with all the emotion – so I didn't bother to wonder who could possibly be knocking on my door at eleven o' clock at night.  
Mai blinked. "Serenity, do you want me to answer it?"  
"No, I'm fine."__

I opened the door, to find a pale face, white skin, soft brown eyes framed perfectly by long white bangs.  
"Ryo?" I blinked._Hmm… I don't think he's one of the five teens the black box spoke about. He's certainly not courageous – there's no chance that he'd want to fight ali–  
_"Serenity, w–we… we need to l–leave." His voice was soft, gentle, and yet it carried a distinct tenseness around it. The teen was obviously nervous – he glanced around him, as if something might jump out and eat him.  
I blinked. "Why?"  
"J–Joey's in trouble. A gang of thugs wants… r–revenge… and i–if th–they find… um… find you…"  
I froze for a full six seconds, my stomach turning over._  
_"J–Joey…?" I darted back into the house. "Excuse me."  
"Th–there's something he wanted me to f–fetch, too!" Ryo yelled, running after me.  
"Go ahead!" I called back.  
Mai raised an eyebrow, and I mouthed _Ryo. _Our eyes met, and I realized that Mai was thinking the same thing as I was._  
Ryo mustn't see that diary._

Mai was the first to break away – she reacted quickly, snatching up my diary and flinging it under the loungechair. She moved like a whirlwind – moments later, I could hear her confronting Ryo in the hallway.  
"What do you want?"  
"Umm… Well, J–Joey's… uh… He wanted me t–to g–g–get Serenity… W–Would you happen to…uh, t–t–to know where–"  
I sighed, coming up behind Mai. "Joey's bedroom's just through that door."  
"Th–thanks!" he yelped, racing away. I sidled over to Mai, and murmured to her: "Apparently some thugs have it in for Joey. Ryo wants to take me away, make sure that I'm safe for Joey."  
She grunted. "With something like _that_ in his bedroom, I'm not surprised that someone's after Joey."  
"So, do you think that Ryo's…?"  
She tilted her head, blonde locks flashing. "Can't say. Joey could have just asked him to fetch you, and told him that."  
"In which case… Joey really is…"  
"I'm sorry, Serenity–"

That was when pale teen emerged from Joey's bedroom, clutching a blue box – _the_ blue box. My stomach churned, my head hurt – I felt sick.  
_Joey really is involved…_  
"Bingo", Mai whispered, and Ryo beckoned to me. "C–come on. We–we don't h–have much t–time."  
"I'm coming, too." Mai growled, and the pale boy cringed. "Um… A–alright… uh… yeah, s–sure…"

As I stepped outside, something rustled in the foliage next to me, and Ryo's face went strangely blank. Perhaps he was fighting the Yeerk mind, or maybe Visser Three was talking to him…  
I put a hand on his shoulder. "Are you alright?"  
"Y–yeah. I–I'm fine", he stammered, jolted out of his trance, and that was when the thing in the bushes droppedin front me with a dull _thud._ It was a beautiful, sleek creature – a pitch–black cat.  
"Oh, a kitty!" Mai immediately went forwards to pet it, but it moved away, keeping its unwavering gaze trained on Ryo. As Mai stood up and backed away, I looked over at the pale teen.  
"We should keep goi…" I trailed off mid–sentence – Ryo's facehad gone blank once more, and I knew instantly that he wasn't listening to me. I nudged Mai, and she looked over at the boy as well.  
"I will", the white haired teen mumbled – and the catvanished from sight, disappearing as quickly as it had come.  
_Ryo, talking to a cat…_ I breathed a sigh of relief._  
Even if he's not one of those five the black box talked about, he's on our side.  
_  
Ryo went to move forwards once more, but I stopped him, my hand still on his shoulder. "Ryo…" I whispered, praying that the cat wouldn't hear me. "Let's go back inside."  
He glanced nervously at me."We've… we've g–got to , um, g–g–go."  
Mai understood the question in my eyes, and put her hand on the boy's other shoulder. "No. Come inside."  
"Wh–why? Those th–thugs, they might–"  
Mai stopped him with a single look. "Ryo… We know what you are."

Instantly, his eyes widened, and he backed away, glancing from one of us to the other."Y–You know? But… h–how…n–n–no _way_…"  
Something touched my leg, and I looked down. There was the cat again – and just as I expected, Ryo's face went blank for a second, then he glared at Mai. "W–what do you know about me…?"  
"Come inside, and I'll tell you."The challenge was obvious in her voice – but it only intimidated the teen.  
"N…n-no!"  
And Ryo Bakura fled into the night, the cat following, clinging to his leg like it didn't want him to go.

Somehow, I didn't think it was the last we'd seen of them.

**MARIK**  
_Hey! I'm talking to you!  
_I shook my head and yawned. _Sorry. You were saying?_  
_Well, Ryo's gone to get Serenity. Duke, too. This is our best opportunity yet!  
Tristan's on his own, then…?_ Tawny fur began to replace my reddish brown. Long claws grew out of huge paws, and Yami Marik laughed as he read my mind. _  
Oh, I like this plan!  
_I grinned savagely, feeling his presence rise inside me._I thought you might.  
_––––––––  
A kestrel circled around a deserted parking lot near the Kame Game Shop Yugi's granddad ran – my lion's eyes spotted it easily. As the bird dropped, I sprinted over – just in time for Yami Marik and I to watch it shift into a crouched brunette. Tristan stood to stretch his legs – and then he spoke.  
"I know that you're here, Marik."

When I remained silent, he turned in a slow circle, then began to walk towards the centre of the parking lot – it was just as I'd predicted.

And silently, I padded after him, slipping out of my hiding place behind a rubbish bin. His weak human ears didn't register my silent footfalls, or the sound of my stealthy breathing. I set up on him easily, crouching right behind him, while he scanned the area in front of his eyes.  
A fatal mistake.

"Come out!" he called , and Yami Marik chuckled.  
_Shall we?_ Yami Marik invited me, a savage lilt in his voice. I laughed._  
Be my guest._  
Yami Marik leaped, I leaped. We both bared our teeth in a snarl, moving together in perfect harmony once more – even if I hadn't been a lion, Tristan Taylor wouldn't have stood a chance.  
**WHAM!**  
Sheathed paws drove the brunette forwards into the gravel as we landed on top of him, with perfect precision. He tried to get up – but it was too late! Yami Marik let out a hiss of exultation, and our left paw swung, clobbering the brunette. We watched in interest as his body twitched, then went still before stepping back a moment to admire our handiwork: Tristan Taylor had been knocked unconscious with a single blow.  
Yami Marik was enjoying himself. _Wonderful, isn't it?  
Yeah._ I began demorphing, walking back over to Tristan as I did so. And about three minutes later, I was smiling down at him, with a paw on his chest as I acquired a new morph. –{Thanks, Tristan.}–  
In my head, Yami Marik laughed. _Only Tristan could have made doing this so easy._  
_Let's just make sure he won't get away.  
Perhaps a little mind control will do him some good…?  
Heheh… Indeed.  
_  
Minutes later, and a very good – looking Egyptian pressed the end of the Millennium Rod against the unconscious teen's chest. "_Heheh…_ You're _ours_ now." We focused on Tristan. "Wakey wakey."  
He jerked, sat up. "Huh? What the– _Marik!_"  
"Quiet."  
_Damn you–!  
_I could sense his thoughts, his feelings, his confusion. I could feel him fighting against my control as best he could, and I snarled in response, tightening my grip on his mind. He groaned, struggled, his hands clenched into fists – and I just laughed. For a second, I thought he might be able to break my control–  
_Let me help.  
_Suddenly, Yami Marik was there too – and between us we easily crushed the brunette. His whole body stiffened and swayed, but he wouldn't give up, struggling futilely against our hold.  
_"_Do you _want me to _hurt you, _Tristan…?"_ We forced him to close his eyes, laughing as his fear rose, as he fought harder against us.  
_What are you up to?_, he demanded, but we didn't answer him.  
_"_You cannot hope to defeat us. _It is time Joey learnt pain…_" The bones in the teen's body began to shift and crack, as we forced his mind to focus on an animal that would serve our purpose well.  
_What the – what are you doing?  
_"Just a little _change_, and it'll _all be over._" I smiled approvingly at the sight of Tristan's fingers blurring and melding into his palms, and for a second that smile became the warped smirk of Yami Marik, before settling for something in between. "You'll _never have to worry _about your friend, ever again…"  
_Joey… Oh, god, no! Someone, help me!_  
The boy's face pushed out ever so slightly, his palms becoming rough and calloused pads. We supported him as his legs began to thin, whispering in his ear.

"It's _too late for that._ You really should have _run while you still could._" Mentally, Tristan flung himself against us with all his might, and Yami Marik burst out into fits of laughter. "_Pathetic! Really, I didn't think a human could possibly be so weak!_"  
The thing which had once been Tristan slid off our shoulder and dropped onto all fours, human nose and mouth extending the rest of the way into a furry muzzle. It glared up at us, and I giggled. "Don't look so cross. Today's the day you surpass Joey, right?"  
_But… I don't want to kill… Not my friend!_  
We shrugged together, my voice blurring between Yami Marik's growl and my own tones. "Too bad. _You're ours now._"  
We raised the Rod together, watching the wolf run towards the Kame Game Shop, listening to Tristan's pleas for us to stop…  
Things certainly were going well.  
_Now, all I have to do is get hold of Joey's sister, and it'll all be perfect._

**YAMI  
**"Dat _idiot!_"  
I glanced out the window. "_It's not Ryo's fault. From what Duke was saying, he was intimidated by Mai – and you know how he gets around people._"  
"Ma sister culd be bein' attacked, right this minit, all becos' of dat idiot!"  
"_Duke's going to get Serenity, there's no need to be…" I broke off at the sight of the crazed wolf running across the lawn. _"_Joey? Morph. **Now.**_"  
The blonde followed my gaze, his eyes narrowing in recognition as he saw the creature tearing madly away at the front door."What to, Yug'?"  
"_Bird. You've got to get out of here!_" I hissed, opening the window.  
"Hey, no need ta panic. Maybe it's jus' Tris' havin' morphed fer whadever reason."  
"_Think about it. We haven't heard from Tristan since he last landed to demorph, and he told us that he suspected Marik was down there… And now there's a wolf going crazy down there. You know what that means!_"  
The blonde glared at me. "I'm not leaving you alone to fight him."  
I sighed. "_Look, you've got to leave – right now. You can't morph rhino in here, and if he finds you, he'll rip you apart. I should be able to hold him off long enough for you to–_"  
Joey grabbed my shoulder, staring into my eyes. "We leave together, or not at all."  
"_Fine…_" I shoved one bed up against the door, Joey helping to get the other one up on top of it. Feathers were already sprouting from the teen's palms as he stepped back, his eyes becoming the sharp amber of a raptor.  
"Come on!" he growled at me, as a crash from the front door indicated that the wolf had entered the shop.

I needed no real encouragement to get going – I was already focusing on the pereguine falcon inside me – and that's when I heard it. Suddenly, Tristan's thought–speak, warped and cruel, was booming in my mind: –{DIE, YEERK!}–  
_Yeerk…?  
_  
"Someone, save me!"  
_Grandpa! _Yugi lunged and rose inside me, and I was having a hard time pushing him back.  
Joey's birdlike features immediately retreated. "Now what, Yug'?"  
_We've got to save him, partner!_ I could feel my host pleading, begging, but I shut him out – I was busy analyzing the situation. We had maybe three minutes before the wolf came into my room and tore us apart.

Three minutes to morph and escape.  
Three minutes to possibly save my host's grandfather's life… and maybe end up killing one of my good friends. Maybe end up dead myself.  
_What do I do?_

**SERENITY**  
As I suspected, the cat followed Ryo, clinging to his leg like it didn't want him to go. It soon came back with the boy in tow. Mai smiled sweetly at him when he rang the doorbell once more: "Would you like to come in, then?"  
"Uh… well, J–Joey wants m–me to g–g–get Seren–"

And suddenly, something about the boy _changed_. "_Of course_", he snarled, shoving his way past me and disappearing inside. We followed him inside to find him in the living room, slouching in a chair. His features seemed wild, savage – his hair had spiked up, and his eyes had narrowed. I shivered – this figure could only be Ryo's dark side…

– and that was when said dark side caught me staring. Instantly, theteen fixed me with a cold, penetrating stare, and I found myself unable to look away. "Ryo…" I gulped, and he laughed. It was a harsh laugh; a laugh that promised pain and nothing but; a laugh that smiled at your despair and misery–  
"_I'm not Ryo._"  
"Bakura!" Mai hissed, but the teen only waved a hand dismissively. The cat moved to Bakura's side, and settled down.  
"_Don't worry; Ryo's in here as well. Just tell me what you know._" "_Well, go on. What precisely is this thing you know about my host?_"

"Well, um… Bakura… I think… uh, this would apply to you, too."  
He rolled his eyes. "_Continue, or we're going to be at this all week._"  
"You're a… perfectly n–normal seventeen–year old teenager…" I looked over at Mai, nervous of what I was about to say.  
_Should we really tell him what we know?  
_She smiled reassuringly, and nodded – and so I swallowed and finished my sentence. "… But only when you want to be."

For an instant, surprise registered on Bakura's features, to be replaced with a sarcastic smile. "_I'm afraid I don't know what you're on about."_Suddenly, shadows flickered and danced around him. He reached out to us, black threads rippling and shifting between his fingers. The cat hissed and dug its claws into the boy's leg, but Bakura ignored it."_Eheheheh – let's make this easy, hmmm? What do you know, Serenity? Answer me!_"His eyes twinkled with untold malice – and suddenly, my mouth felt dry. I couldn't speak, couldn't move…

Mai stepped defensively in front of me, breaking the spell. "You know full well what she was trying to say."  
"_Which is?_", he hissed, getting to his feet and advancing on us inch by inch. Shadows curled around us, and suddenly I couldn't see – I was in complete darkness.  
"_I will ask… one last time. What is it that you know about me…Serenity?_"

I could feel myself panicking – only Mai's warm touch was keeping me from screaming. The darkness was suffocating, pressing in all around me–

**WHAM!  
**  
Bakura swore, and the shadows cleared. He roughly grabbed my arm, started dragging me towards the back door. "_We've got to leave!_"  
"Wha–"  
"_No time to explain._"  
**WHAM!  
**Something huge slammed into our front door once more. The teenager snarled down at the cat, spreading his hands and closing his eyes. "_Take them! I'll hold him off!_"

Bakura turned to face the doorway, lettingloose with a guttural roar that should have been impossible for any human to produce…

Only he wasn't human anymore. Standing behind him, I could only watch dumbly, as short, stubby claws grew from slim human fingers, a long reptilian tail thumped to the floor behind him, the muscles in his back rippling and bulging. He looked over his shoulder, his voice suddenly raspy. In the light, I could have sworn that his mouth was protruding– "_Just go!_"

Mai snatched my arm, and with a start I realized that the cat was moving, leading the way out the back door. "Come on!"

I didn't even think – my legs moved on their own, as we sprinted across the yard, up and over the fence, and then down alleyway after alleyway. When I began to slow, Mai lifted me up, and put her on her shoulders. "We've gotta keep moving, yeah?"  
"Yeah…"  
Suddenly, the cat skidded to a halt, and shook its head. Mai blinked. "Looks like it's lost." The feline meowed a few times, then sighed when it realized that we couldn't understand a word. It scratched, then put a paw out in front of it in the universal sign for "Stop". The blonde lady nodded.  
"Okay, we'll wait here."  
And the cat vanished into the darkness, leaving us alone.


	15. YGO Chars List, Morphing Explained

Well... I figured that with all the YGO characters in this story so far, it would be best to list them. Some characters also have bizarre mechanics for their own powers which need to be explained in full (I've had questions...) – and morphing also needs to be explained… so, here you go.

All listed morphs are as of Chapter 13 - but there's a few hints thrown in as to what will happen next. If you've got some good ideas about where the story could go, or any more questions about morphing/Item mechanics, then just drop me a review or PM, and let me know about them!

We'll begin with the rulings on morphing, then move on to the characters. Specific powers or known abilities so far are under that character's listing.

**––––––Morphing rulings––––––**

Becoming able to morph:  
– Characters may only gain the power to morph if they have touched the blue box (Escafil Device). They do not have to have focused on the box – they simply have to have contact with it.  
– It is possible for animals to acquire the morphing power, if they happen to touch the blue box.  
– Once they have this power, they may only lose it in the event of being trapped in a morph, and once they have lost this power, they may not regain it – even by touching the blue box (so yeah, the Ellimist can break that rule)  
– It is a character's _body_ that is able to morph. This means that a morph–capable character taken by a Yeerk will still be able to morph, and so will a character possessed by a dark side/getting mind controlled by Marik.  
– A Yeerk can gain the morphing ability, however if a Yeerk with morphing abilities sits inside a host with no such powers, it cannot make the host morph.

**Getting trapped:**  
–To be trapped in a morph, a character stays in morph for over two hours, after which point they can't morph back.  
– The only known way to regain morphing powers by being trapped is to have them regranted by either the Ellimist or Crayak, in which case the morph the character's been trapped in becomes their new form (ie if you're trapped as a wolf and regain morphing powers, you can only become human for two hours at a time)  
– There is one exception to this: If a character has morphed an animal that then undergoes metamorphosis somehow (ie a caterpillar, a tadpole, that sort of thing), then on changing into the final stage the morphing clock is reset, and they'll be able to demorph. (Yeah, sticking with Animorphs canon here… If you ask me, that was used for one of the most half–done, anti–climatic endings of all time, but anyway.)  
**Time:**  
– Morphing takes no less than three minutes to complete. As the characters progress, this time can be reduced to under two minutes.  
– Beginning a demorph with under three minutes left on the time limit does not result in a character getting trapped in a partial morph – however, the demorph is harder to complete, and may require coaxing from another character to get through it.  
–If a character falls unconscious for whatever reason whilst in morph, they will not demorph. The exception is Marik staying too long in any form, where he will ALWAYS auto–demorph in the last five minutes (forced by Yami Marik)  
**Acquiring:**  
– Characters may not acquire anything whilst in morph.  
– An unmorphed character cannot acquire a morphed character's morph.  
– An unmorphed character may acquire another unmorphed character with the morphing ability – however, they do not gain the morphing power in that form.  
– If a morphed character touches the blue box, that morph does not gain the morphing ability.  
– Characters may ONLY acquire animals – no bacteria/plants/rocks/chairs, ect.  
– Character must touch the animal to acquire it.  
– Most animals go into a trance – like state for roughly twenty seconds after the character has stopped focusing on it. However, not all animals do this.  
**Thought – speak:**  
– When in morph, a character may use thought–speak to communicate with any character, even unmorphed characters. This has no real range, beyond becoming fainter when one is "far away" from the source.  
– When in human morph (ie Marik in human morph), one can still use thought–speak.  
– FF. net will not let me use the traditional greater than/lesser than signs for thought-speak. To get around this, thought-speak is instead done with -{ and }- .  
**  
––––––A quick word about the Millennium Items and morphing––––––  
**If a character with morphing abilities morphs, the Item will melt into them if it is being worn (the Puzzle and Ring), or if the character has it stuck into their belt (in the case of the Rod). However, this will only work for the _owners_ of the Items – if Yami Bakura held the Rod, then morphed, the Rod would drop to the ground.  
**––––––About those dark sides...––––––  
**All of them speak in _"quotation marks with italics"_ now. If at any time a dark side's speak goes into "normal speech", it means that the "light" side is in fact talking.

––––––**The List Of Yu-Gi-Oh Characters––––––**

––––––Yu–Gi–Oh characters with the ability to morph:––––––  
Yugi Moto: Leader of the resistance against the Yeerks.  
**Yami Yugi (aka "Yami")**: Yugi's "other half", Yami is an Egyptian pharaoh with the ability to take Yugi over, so long as Yugi's wearing the Millennium Puzzle.  
**Yugi/Yami's Abilities/Item Powers: **With his Millennium Puzzle, Yami has the ability to cast Shadow Games, and force people into them – he can also punish people with a Penalty Game if they lose the Shadow Game. Yugi CANNOT do those things – however, both of them can use the Millennium Puzzle to turn Yami Marik back into Marik on contact. Yugi and Yami work together all the time, and Yugi is always conscious during a possession. Yugi can also force his way out of a possession and forcibly retake control from Yami (as he did during Duelist Kingdom vs Kaiba), but most of the time the two of them let each other know when they want to be in control.

They are both universally amazing at games, however appalling at any sort of physical sport or activity.  
Because Yami is technically living inside Yugi's body, when Yugi acquired the morphing power Yami gained it as well.  
**Yugi/Yami's Morphs: **Grizzly Bear, Peregrine Falcon, a random guy, Ferret.

**Joey Wheeler**: Yugi's best friend, Joey is fiercely loyal to both Yami and Yugi, and trusts them completely. The most outspoken of the group, he uses an American accent frequently. He's not known for his patience, being quick to rush into situations and often reckless.  
**Joey's Abilities:** Joey has quite good fighting skills, which he learned on the streets. He knows how to live on the streets, and can tie ropes reasonably well. During a street fight, Joey becomes tricky and unpredictable, able to dodge an opponent's blows with relative ease and swiftness.  
**Joey's Morphs:** Golden Retriever, Rhino, Golden Eagle.

**Ryo Bakura:** The shyest member of the resistance, Ryo's constantly worried about what will happen. His stutter and awkward, careful speech are his hallmarks, and he is easily scared by other characters, plus he is inherently mistrustful of everyone – the only person he will trust to any degree is Tristan. He's kind and gentle, and the member of the group with the strongest moral compass. Ryo would much rather _not_ participate in the war, however Yami Bakura has forced him to fight in it.**  
Yami Bakura (aka "Bakura"):** The total opposite of Ryo, Bakura's cruel and confident. He's an Egyptian spirit, just like Yami Yugi – however, he's the spirit of a thief, possessing Ryo through his Millennium Ring.  
**Ryo/Bakura's Abilities/Item Powers: **With the Millennium Ring, Bakura (and only Bakura) can seal people's souls into figurines in the blink of an eye, and can perform incredible acrobatics to fight or escape enemies (think Assassin's Creed) – however, these strain his host's body. He can also control shadows to some extent, generally using them to confuse and entrap enemies, and can seal part of his soul into objects, where he exerts partial control over them. Ryo can unseal any souls trapped in the figurines, and can send his own soul into objects – however, doing this takes a huge amount of effort, and makes him run the risk of being killed if the object is broken.  
Unlike Yugi, Ryo does not remain conscious during a possession by Bakura – he simply blacks out, and unlike Marik he cannot resist Bakura taking him over. He never remembers Bakura's actions, unless Bakura wishes to show him what's going on for whatever reason (which isn't usually) Both Ryo and Bakura can morph, in the same way that Yugi and Yami can morph.  
**Ryo/Bakura's** **Morphs:** Snowy Owl, Pigeon, Marik Ishtar, Komodo Dragon (Note: Ryo will lose control of this morph and go on a rampage; however, Bakura will not – providing he has taken Ryo over_ before the creature's mind kicks in_. Switching when the morph's been completed will not work – however, if Ryo morphs to Komodo Dragon and switches to Bakura midway through the morph, Bakura will not lose control). Ryo's morphing is often described as "beautiful" – it is rarely disgusting. Bakura's is generally horrific, but presumably only because he loves it that way.

**Duke Devlin:** CEO of his own company, Duke is cunning and ruthless, often being the one to come up with a plan. He's also usually the first to make the smart–ass comments.  
**Duke's Abilities: **Duke has the ability to change his thought–speak voice at will, making himself sound like someone different – he's currently been shown to be the only character who can do this. He's highly intelligent, and a fast, tactical thinker. While he is not as adept at fighting as Joey or Tristan, he's lighter than either of them and both controlled and graceful in his movements. He's a master of betting games, and good at pretty much any other game he chooses. He's also supposedly able to injure a thug with a single die from fifty metres.  
**Duke's Morphs:** Crow, Golden Eagle, Cat, Cougar.  
**  
Tristan Taylor:** Tristan's the one who holds the group together, often comforting Ryo and stopping him from running away, and also coming between other characters if they begin to fight (which is often, as many of the characters don't like each other). His parents have been infested, and now work for the Sharing in America.  
**Tristan's Abilities:** Tristan's reasonable at street fighting, and being built like an ox lets him punch harder yet slower than Joey. He's also the only person Ryo is comfortable being with.**  
Tristan's Morphs:** German Shepherd, an unidentified thug, Wolf, Australian Kestrel.****

Marik Ishtar: The newest addition to the group, and undoubtedly the most troublesome; Marik's childish at best and evil at worst. When he wants revenge, he'll never stop in his crusade to get it, often targeting things close to his target in order to get it. After the Yeerk infesting the Egyptian was removed, the others trapped Marik in a dog morph, planning on using the morphing cube to allow him to continue morphing. When this plan backfired, Marik's split personality emerged, and the Ellimist gave him his morphing powers back. However, Marik may only attain his human form for two hours – his new form is a Pharaoh Hound.  
He is currently believed to be dead by his family.  
**Yami Marik:** Marik's split personality, created from the pains Marik felt as a small child. Yami Marik enjoys torture and pain, and is able to withstand a great deal of pain.  
**Marik/Yami Marik's Abilities/Item Powers:  
**Directly after the Battle City incident, Marik was infested by the Yeerks, and controlled by a high–ranking Yeerk for eight weeks – as a result of this, he knows a great deal of information about the Yeerks, including the current locations of the Yeerk Pools. He's pretty much desperate for revenge against them; which is why he joined up with Yugi and co. Yami Marik only joined, so that he could kill things.**  
**Both Marik and Yami Marik may take over people's minds with the power of the Millennium Rod – however, they must be in their human form to do this. Once the victim has been touched with the Rod, they may morph and still retain control over that person. They may also control multiple people at the same time.  
Like Yami Yugi, Yami Marik may create Shadow Games; however, he does not generally do this.  
At any point where Marik becomes angry, Yami Marik will automatically take him over, whilst Marik blacks out. However, Yami Marik can simply take Marik over if he so wishes (but only if Marik loses the resulting mental battle for control).  
It is also possible for Marik and Yami Marik to work together, if they happen to share a common goal – in which case they will fight side–by–side as Yami and Yugi do, becoming very powerful in the process.  
If Marik attempts to retain any form for more than two hours, Yami Marik will always possess him in the final five minutes and demorph, whether either of them like it or not (one of the restrictions forced on them by the Ellimist).

**Marik/Yami Marik's Morphs:** Lion, Pharaoh Hound (main form), Marik Ishtar, Golden Eagle.

**Yeerk – Controlled (aka "Controller") Yu–Gi–Oh Characters:  
Anzu Mazaki**: Oddly, I'm actually not an Anzu – basher (just putting that out there). Anzu is kind and friendly, making Yugi all the more determined to save her when he finds out that she's become a Controller. Anzu often appears leading a group of Controllers, and is hellbent on taking out the resistance so that she *ie the Yeerk inside her* can be promoted.

**Yugi's Grandad (Solomon Moto):** A high–ranking Yeerk controls Solomon, which really strains his relationship with Yugi. Fortunately for the kid, Solomon is too old to fight, and doesn't usually arrive until after the resistance has disappeared. However, Solomon is starting to suspect that his grandson is involved in something, and puts pressure on Yugi daily to join _The Sharing_ (the Yeerk – front organization, which aims to get people silently infested in large numbers).  
**  
Tristan's Parents: **Tristan's parents have moved to America to do high–up work for _The Sharing_. Little else is really known about them.

**Seto Kaiba: **Kaiba is, unsurprisingly, the CEO of Kaiba Corp, the world's gaming supercompany. After being accidentally kidnapped/rescued by Yugi and co, Kaiba was left in the remainder of his crashed tank. Since he definitely heard the spaceship as it gave chase, and Anzu Mazaki was planning to make him into a Controller before the tank incident occurred, it's likely that Kaiba was made a Controller – however, this is unconfirmed.  
Kaiba keeps a massive private zoo at his mansion, with various rare and savage creatures inside – the resistance's first port of call for new battle morphs.  
––––––––––**  
Non–Morphing Yu–Gi–Oh Characters  
Serenity Wheeler:** Serenity can actually morph, due to having picked up the blue box she found in Joey's room; however, she is not aware of it yet and thus has not morphed (and so she's on this list). She listened to a black box recording from Elfangor with Mai, when Mai found it in the construction site – and now her relationship with her brother Joey is strained. Serenity does not feel that she can trust anybody with what she knows (except Mai, of course), and thus distances herself from Joey. Joey in return has figured out that something's wrong, but has no clue what it is (as of Chapter 13). Her brother does not know that Serenity has found and touched the blue box, and only Mai knows about the black box. Serenity is kind and gentle, perhaps a little on the shy side; but also easily upset.

**Mai Kujaku:** Like Serenity, Mai can also morph, due to having touched the blue box Serenity found in Joey's room – but as of Chapter 13, it's unknown whether she knows this or not. Mai is a motherly figure for Serenity, strong and independent.  
It was Mai who pulled Serenity into the whole mess she's currently in, due to have having picked up the black box at the construction site (which was in fact a recording from Elfangor).

**Mokuba Kaiba: **Constantly suspicious of Yugi and co, Mokuba's certain that something strange is going on. However, when he attempted to confront them, Marik wiped his mind and destroyed the evidence (video footage taken from Kaiba Corp showing Tristan becoming a kestrel, and Marik being both alive, and becoming a dog). However, Mokuba is still determined to get to the bottom of things, especially with his big brother Seto Kaiba potentially being a Controller. Although Mokuba was involved in the tank incident, it's somewhat unlikely that he was made a Controller – since Anzu didn't really need to, providing his brother was infested.

So, yeah... That was a long list.  
Better get going with Chapter 14, hmm?


	16. Ch 14: Nightmare

******DISCLAIMER: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, Animorphs, or anything else that doesn't belong to me. I only own this story.  
****  
**Chapter 14: Nightmare  


**YAMI BAKURA**  
_"Ssso… Marrrik."_ I muscled my way through the remains of the door and stepped outside, dropping to all fours as the last of my human features receded.  
_Kill. Eat.  
_A voice laughed in my head. –{_So…Yami_ Bakura. I have to _kill you _next, huh?}–  
_Hungry…_

Ignoring my enemy for now, I took in a good lick of the air instead. My tongue flickered – in, out, telling me all sorts of useful information. It picked up every little scent – the musky smell of the lion in the tree, the fainter smell of another cat that had been here. I shifted from foot to foot, feeling the monstrous strength in those reptilian limbs now coursing through me. The power… _The hunger…_

–{So, the Slowpoke lizard, versus an awesome _killer _lion. Who do you reckon's gonna win… _and who's gonna die?_}– The lion, rather unwisely, dropped out of the tree, walked over, stood right in front of me as it continued its taunting.

Which was a very, very bad move.

–{_You don't have a chance_, you know. _Give up, and we'll–_}–

_Food!_  
I lunged!

–{Aaah!}– the lion yelped, taken off guard by the sudden movement. My jaws missed the target, but one claw just barely grazed the lion's footpaw, drawing blood.  
–{Okay, so _maybe you're a _fast lizard_._}–

I laughed as the new scent sent my head reeling in bouts of ecstasy, my lizard instincts becoming stronger. _Kill… Eat…_  
I laughed. –{_Ah, the scent of blood. It's been far too long since last time, y'know?_}–

The lion eyed me up warily as I advanced –probably trying to figure out where my weak spots were. I laughed, my tongue tasting the air once more. I could _smell_ its fear now.  
_Hungry… hungry…_  
–{You know why you never _use that morph, Yami _Bakura_._}–, it snarled in reply, shifting ever so slightly at my approach. I knew exactly what Marik was talking about – this thing wasa killing machine, its mind near–unstoppable. The beast was hungry, and now, driven into a frenzy by the lion's blood – it's instincts were incredible! It was an ancient mind, brimming with pure, undiluted power…

_And if I'm not careful, that mind could take me over._  
_But… I'm so… hungry… So very, very–_

I clamped down immediately on the predator's instincts. Whilst I normally wouldn't have too many issues with going bezerk, I need control over my form right now – with Serenity and Mai on the line…

I paused a moment, remembering that moment when I looked back. The two girls had definitely seen me morphing; that could be a major problem if they were to be captured.  
_Hmm. I might go after them, once I've finished this idiot off. It would be so, so regrettable if they both happened to fall into comas.  
So very unfortunate...  
Hungry…  
_  
–{You are rather _quiet_. Are _you _perhaps… _scared?_}– The words were still alternating between two distinct voices – it was unsettling, to say the least.  
–{_Which one are you… Yami Marik, or Marik?_}–  
A pause, then the voices came again: –{Both _of us._}–

And in the next instant, the big cat was a tan blur, racing right at me. My claws gripped the ground in a split second, as I braced myself for impact. I opened my mouth, hoping to catch the lion. Then my jaws would close around its neck and I'd–  
–{Ha, _fooled_ ya!}–

The big cat leaped _over_ my head, coming down on the other side and lunging for the door – but I was fast. Strong teeth locked around the lion's leg, and I began to pull it backwards. It struggled, tried to get a grip on the ground and stop me, but I was far too powerful for that. I shook my head, feeling the immense satisfaction of the movement–  
SLASH!  
"RAAARRGH!"

Pain! I'd underestimated its flexibility, and now the lion was on landing on top of me, a set of claws flashing across my left eye! I snapped my jaws, trying to capture the paw, but the lion was too agile for me, springing away and zoning in on my neck. Thinking quickly, I rolled over, flattening it, and in return felt Marik cutting into my back. Blood spattered on the driveway as I got back up… _delicious blood_…

The lion was already on its paws, smirking at me as best it could. –{So, are you going to… _run away…?_}–  
We both knew the answer, even before I'd thought it at Marik, a guttural roar rising from my throat as I did so.  
–{_Never!_}–

**YAMI YUGI**  
It was Joey who made the decision for me, bounding out the door and down the stairs. "Hey, you! Yeah, you! Lookee!"  
My grandpa – no, my host's grandpa – groaned. "What the–"  
–And Joey called out again. "Here, doggy! Ya wanna piece of me? You got it!"  
_"Joey!"_ I dashed down the stairs, in time to see the wolf turn on Joey, who was standing in front of the fireplace next to the old man, his left hand behind his back. A nasty laugh rang in my mind – it was partly in the voice of my friend, but partly Marik's voice as well…

–{_Heheheh… So, you came. You know, I wouldn't morph if I were you… Not in front of a Yeerk like him, anyway._}–  
Joey laughed, calmly clocking my grandfather over the skull. There was a strange, feral light in his eyes – that reckless look he always wore when he entered a fight was now creeping across his face. "What's to stop me from doing that now, huh?"

–{_You're too late! I will have my revenge!_}– The canine lunged – but suddenly stopped and twisted back in midair.–{Can't… no… _Just give up already!_}–  
The blonde laughed again, shifting into a fighting stance. "Give up? Why would I, when Tristan's still fighting you?"  
–{_I am a wolf, in case you hadn't–_}–  
"Yeah, pup. You're a wolf, so you're a bigshot, huh?" The boy's voice went as hard and cold as steel. "You're even _worse_ than scum, Marik. Come and _fight_ me!"  
–{_You can't even hope to survive this!_}–  
"But I _can_. I know I can!" Suddenly, Joey lunged and snatched a hold of wolf fur in his right hand, his left still behind his back."Yami, get over here! If you can touch him, then maybe it'll–"

But Marik wouldn't let the teen finish. With a snarl that sent shivers down my spine, the canine twisted away, then lunged with all its strength for Joey's throat–

Only to find itself impaled on the toasting fork in the teenager's left hand, the tip glowing red–hot.

–{_No…_}–

The voice was a dying whisper, and with it, the battle light in the blonde's eyes died. The two of them fell together, the wolf lying, the boy dropping to one knee as he cradled the shaggy head.  
"Tristan! Come on, wake up!"  
_"Demorph"_, I growled, coming over to the pair. There was an ugly amount of blood on the floor, but I knelt in it anyway, running a hand down the animal's side._ "If you die, Marik has won."  
_"Come on, you can do it! Don't lose to that jerk! Demorph!"  
The animal's eyes closed, its breathing labored. –{I… c–can't…}–  
Joey howled, his voice breaking into sobs. "TRIIIISTAAAAN!"  
–{Sorry, guys… I guess… this is… it…}–  
And my host screamed._  
_–––––––  
**SERENITY  
**We sat together in the alleyway, waiting for the cat to return. Mist crept down on us, little by little, until it had both of us soaked to the bone. I sighed, remembering how this whole mess started…

_"Serenity…? You okay?"  
I've been hanging out with Mai Kujaku more and more often – lately, I've been drifting further and further away from my brother. I know that if I let him simply slip away, I might never get him back… but…_

A friendly hand on my shoulder. "Hey. You can tell me what it is."  
"Joey. I think… he's hiding something from me." I look up at the blonde, to find her beaming.  
"Well, we'll just have to find out what it is!" She sits up. "First stop, his room. I'm sure we could find something there."

Memory flowed faster for a moment, to the moment where I'd found the box in Joey's room.  
_With a noise that is a mix between a cry and a giggle, I drop the little blue cube. The blonde looks curiously at me.  
"What is it?"  
"It… tickled. I swear it tickled."  
"Hmm." With a toss of her head, Mai stoops and picks up the box – only to nearly drop it herself a second later. "Wow, it did tickle!"  
I put one hand on the cube, but nothing happens. "That's… odd."  
Mai's gaze darkens for an instant. "Yeah. Yeah, I guess it is." She looks away from me, hands back the box. "Here. I'm going to go and get something..."  
_  
The scene blurred, and now I was sitting with Mai on the couch, a tiny black box resting on the table in front of us.  
_"I wanted to show you this."  
"Why?"  
"I found it in that old construction site the other day. You know, the one where those idiots let off the fireworks? Well, it said all sorts of things… but I think the blue box it talks about might be related to the one in Joey's room."_(1)_  
So I listen to the recording… and that's how I learn about the invasion, and the five that resist it._

The memory abruptly shifted, then shifted again. Flashes of scenes, things that scared me, flickered through my mind, sparked, then clicked into place.

_A huge engine roars and splutters above me, a shadow falls across my lap. Looking out the window, I see a spaceship swooping civilians, huge red beams of light obliterating everything in its path. Seconds later, it is gone, simply vanished into thin air…_

Mai shows me a video on Youtube; Tristan is turning into a kestrel. I do not believe it – but what unnerves me is the thousands of almost robotic comments that pour upon the video every second. They are demanding the bird's blood, planning to hunt down the boy…

Mokuba comes to my door, demanding that I tell him everything I know about Joey and his friend Tristan. He is conducting an investigation on behalf of KaibaCorp. I tell him what I can, and he seems interested to hear that I think that Joey is hiding something from me. He goes to find Tristan – to confront him or ask more questions, I do not know.  
What I do know is that he stares at me with a blank look in his eyes when I ask him how the investigation went. He does not remember ever being suspicious of Joey and Tristan…  
  
_And Bakura… seeming to distort and shift as we leave, that tail coming out behind him, voice becoming rough and gravelly…___

Mai sighed, snapping me out of my trance. "So… Bakura."  
I nodded. "I saw it." I waited a moment, but she didn't say anything – so I went on. "The resistance… they really can turn themselves into animals. I guess that means the Yeerks are real, too."  
Mai shrugged, one delicate finger tracing a pattern in the pavement."I don't think it's just them. I haven't tested the theory out, but…"  
"What?"  
"Well–"

And that's when _he_ appeared, standing calm and confident at the other end of the alleyway. The apparition was tall, slim, with olive skin and green eyes, messy black bangs. His outline seemed to flicker like a ghost's in the mist as he walked towards us, sharp white teeth glinting in a perfect smile.  
"We had best get going."

_Duke Devlin... Did he hear us?  
_Mai tensed up, and my mind raced. The blonde lady stepped defensively in front of me, her voice like steel. "Going _where?_ I don't seem to recall you coming with us."_  
_"Oh, I was with you. About…", and here he glanced at his right wrist, before pulling a face; "…Ah, I don't have my watch. Still, it would have been… I dunno, about ten minutes ago?" With a start, I noticed that Duke looked tired – a little pale as well._  
_Mai wasn't about to back down. "Again, I don't remember you being with us then."  
The teen tilted his head to one side, his eyes alight with mischief. "Fifteen minutes, then?"  
The blonde sighed. "_Duuuuke.._. Seriously, I don't even remember the last time I saw you." He laughed, lifting his head to the night sky, as if Mai had just made a rather good joke.  
"Oh, I suppose that's true enough _._Yeah, you haven't seen me… as in _me_… for a while. Hey, would you like to hear a story?"  
The blonde groaned."Come on, Serenity."

We turned our backs on him, started to walk away – but Duke's next words made us both stop. "What if it was a story about a boy, who was a perfectly ordinary teenager… when he wanted to be?"  
Mai turned, facing him down with ease. "What if it was?"  
A soft laugh. "Yeah, I thought you might say that." He paused thoughtfully. "You two know so much… To be honest, it makes me wonder what you really know about Ryo Bakura."

From somewhere far off, there was a distant roar and a thud. Duke's expression went blank for a moment, just like Ryo's had done; then darkened. "We need to move. Now."  
Mai's voice was sharp. "Why?"  
"I…Look, I can'ttell you that!" He was getting frustrated with us now. "You two just need to come with me! Or do you _want_ whatever's out there to get you?"  
"You do have a point – but where are we going?"  
He smirked, and began walking down the alleyway, pausing an instant to call back over his shoulder: "The Kame Game Shop. Joey wants you safe."

I looked over at Mai, who shrugged and nodded.

And so, we followed Duke.

**BAKURA  
**From somewhere on my left side, the lion growled. I couldn't see it; the vision in my left eye was dark and blurred now. –{_Keheheheh… _Tired yet?I was having_ so much fun with you._}––{_You don't sound so good yourself._}– I was trying desperately not to show weakness, despite the multiple cuts that were slowly draining me. I could feel my host's subconscious too, automatically trying to usurp me – but I couldn't let that happen. There was no way the boy's weak mind could stand against that of the lizard's right now, maddened as it was with pain–

The lion moved suddenly, and there was nothing I could have done. One minute I was trying not to collapse, and the next minute he'd swiped my shaky front legs out from under me, sending me flat on my stomach. The two Mariks laughed in triumph as I struggled up again, failed.  
–{It's time_ to stop playing_ games. We're not here _for you_…}–  
Through dying, blurred vision, I saw the lion limp away past me, and into the house – and chuckled when I saw what I'd done to his leg. Minutes passed like hours…

–{_Duke. He got away, and I'm… not looking too good._}– With the last of my strength, I slowly dragged myself back towards the shelter of the house, wincing with every step. I had lost a lot of blood by this point, my host was fighting hard, but still I moved.  
_If I can just get inside, I can demorph…  
If…_

"Rrrrr…"

**MARIK**  
Now in my human form, I stalked my way through the streets. Bakura was a pain, a spanner in the works – he'd fended me off, prevented me from taking Serenity right then and there…  
_You should have gone back and killed him. He wasn't about to last much longer, after all–  
Shut it! I'm the one in control!  
Sure about that…?_

I ignored Yami Marik, instead reasoning with myself about my reasons concerning letting Bakura live. If I didn't need to get past him after all, why waste effort trying? I had scared Serenity enough to force her to run away from safety – and now I could hunt her down with ease. I'd demorphed in her house, and now I had something I was certain was hers – a hair ribbon I'd seen her wear before. All it would take for me to track her down would be to demorph…

_No, not yet. We could go after her later.  
_A wicked idea occurred to me; raising the Rod, I gave Tristan's near–unconscious body the order to demorph, along with orders to say a few last words on my behalf. _After all, it would be funny to allow Joey and Yugi to get their hopes up… then crush them underfoot…_  
And then: _If they were only just barely able to handle one Tristan, let's see them handle two!_

I threw back my head, and laughed at the perfection of this new plan; a low–pitched cackle that went to the sky. Yami Marik bubbled inside me, and suddenly we were speaking together, my voice alternating between my own, and a more sinister tone: "_Watch out_, Joey. It's time to get attacked by your best friend… _again!_ Haha_haha…!_"

**JOEY**  
_"He's gone."_  
"No! No!" I grabbed a chunk of wolf fur, tugging at it. "C'mon, Tris! Morph out, dammit!"  
_Marik… I'll never forgive you for this… You made me…  
_The wolf shuddered – and got up. –{_Heheh… Nearly had you there, didn't I?_}– Its shape flickered, then began to crumple and melt, thought speak becoming human speech as it did so. –{_Well, don't worry about that. This is just the first taste of what I'm going to do to you, Joey..."_  
Tristan blinked, then fell to his knees. "Marik… he…"  
"Yeah, I know." There wasn't much to say – so I put an arm around him instead. "I know."

**SERENITY**  
It took some time, but we eventually arrived safely at the Kame Game shop. Here, Duke stopped – head tilted to one side as though he were listening to far–off music.

"How much do you two know, _exactly?_" He turned, regarding us intently. "For instance, does the word 'Yeerk' mean anything to you?"  
Mai shot me a warning look, and I gave Duke my very best wide eyed, innocent stare. "N–no… What does it mean?"  
"What about that stuff about kids only being kids when they wanted to be?"  
I thought fast. "I meant Ryo's dark side. He's only human – as in _humane_ – when he wants to be, isn't he? When his dark side takes him…"  
The teen nodded. "Right…" He gazed off into space for several seconds, then shook his head. "Well, you'd better come inside."

The game–shop was small, but it was obvious that a confrontation had taken place. There were books and toys scattered all over the floor, and near the fireplace, there was a pool of blood. Three boys – Tristan, Yugi, and Joey – were frantically trying to clean up the mess. I let out a whimper and backed away, but Mai held me, preventing me from escaping.  
Duke paled a little when he saw the blood, but still walked over, jerking his thumb over his shoulder. "I found her."  
Yugi looked over. "Serenity! And…" He frowned. "Whatever possessed you to bring _Mai_ into this?"  
"She was with Serenity when Marik attacked us."

_Marik…?_

Everyone in Domino City knew that the Egyptian was dead as a doornail. He'd even gone and recorded a suicide video, where he'd jumped off a skyscraper. I shot Mai a questioning look, and got a shrug in response – she had no clue what the others were on about, either.  
Yugi sighed. "Well, Mai and Serenity it is then." He turned back to the mess. "You two are going to sit tight and stay upstairs for a day or so. If you start hearing weird things… like if there's a fight going on downstairs… you're going to have to run. If there's a voice in your head, do what it says. Hopefully it won't come to that, though."  
Mai did her very best 'confused' impression. "Are you going to explain yourself at all?"  
Yugi turned back for an instant, sadness in his eyes. "Basically, there's some really bad guys after Joey, and we're worried that they'll come after Serenity. That's all I can tell you."

With that, he walked away, leaving Duke to lead us upstairs.

**RYO**  
"Huh…?" I rolled over – and right into something wet. "Augh!"  
Scrambling to my feet, I could only look on in horror at the dark red liquid pooling on the floor, staining my shirt and jeans where I'd laid in it.  
_B–bakura, what's going on? Did you… uh… d–did you…?_

But the resident evil voice inside my head seemed to be dormant for the time being, and offered me no answers to this question. Turning in a slow circle revealed that the front door was smashed in, bloody paw prints leading from outside, further inside the house… Serenity's house, the place I'd been in a few minutes ago.  
_That's odd. I'm back here, but it feels like only a few minutes, since I ran away…  
Blacked out…  
Oh, no._

Fear gripped me, making my blood run cold. "I–is anyone h–home?" I waited a few minutes in the cold, dead silence, before moving further inside. The wooden floor creaked eerily under my weight, and I tensed. "Um… H–hello?"

There was an overturned couch in the corner – someone or some_thing_ had been through the house. As I moved over to it, something scuffed across the floor; I knelt to pick it up.  
_A diary._  
The book had fallen open at a tear–stained page – the most recent entry. Try as I might, I couldn't help but skim read the entry automatically, even as I went to put it on the desk…

And then stare in shock at what was written there on that page. My eyes widened, and I began to shake._  
She–she knows! _

Minutes ticked by, as I struggled with myself. _Should I tell someone about this…?_

And eventually, I got my answer._  
_–––––––  
**DUKE**  
Even as I attempted to explain what had happened to myself and Bakura, I couldn't help but pace – everything had escalated way, way out of control.  
Tristan grunted and shrugged. "So, _now_ what? The last thing we heard from Bakura was that he was in serious trouble, Marik's both a complete psychopath _and_ on the loose, and we've got a Controller, plus two non–Controllers who don't know a thing about us, right here in our main base."  
As usual, I couldn't help but point out the obvious. "Actually, they may know a great deal – but they won't talk."  
_"We get Bakura to deal with them, then. He can make anyone tell the truth if he wants to."_ Yami's voice was like iron.  
"_If_ he's still alive!" I returned. "He sounded like he was near death."  
_"He has a funny habit of staying alive."  
_"If you say so. At any rate, we've got more pressing problems than that at the moment."  
"Marik…" Joey looked like he was still in a state of near shock – since he'd nearly killed his best friend, that was hardly surprising. "He norm'ly comes at yar through yar friends, doesn't he?" The blonde gave Yami a guilty glance, most likely remembering his ordeal during Battle City.  
"Yeah…" I let loose with a huge yawn. "Look, you guys had better get some sleep. I'll take the first watch, just to make sure nothing goes hideously wrong."  
"Fair enough."

Half an hour later, and the three of them were fast asleep, on blankets and sleeping bags that Yugi had salvaged from the cupboard. I sat quietly, watching them sleep. I would morph in a little while, but I desperately needed rest. Morphing really did drain me – I felt like I was running on barely anything by this point.  
"Hey. Why don't you get some sleep?" Tristan's voice came from right behind me – but Tristan was in front of me as well, curled in a ball and snoring loudly–  
_Wait, what the heck?_

Instinctively, I turned; and there, standing framed by the light of the open window… was another Tristan.

He giggled; a very Marik–y sort of behavior. "Say goodnight. You can play spot the difference tomorrow."  
"What th–" I got no further – the next minute, he was on me, one hand around my neck pressing me back against the wall, and the other–  
WHAM!  
His fist swung. Waves of pain washed through my mind. I tried to make some sort of sound, but now his hand was over my mouth. He lashed out again, and I could have sworn something went _crunch_ in my jaw; pain, saliva, and blood mixed in my mouth…

After that, I felt nothing.

NOTES:

I'll be lazy and put in a "two for one" reference in here. The black box is canon to Animorphs – they actually made a whole three books (_The Andalite Chronicles_) out of that recording. I was exploring what might happen if someone happened to find it.

As for the other reference: The fireworks are a reference to the excuse that the Yeerks used in the Animorphs books – which was along the lines of "Some idiots let off fireworks in that old construction site. Any information on them would be appreciated kthxbai". They were used earlier on in this series, but remained unreferenced.


	17. Ch 15: Preparations

**DISCLAIMER: I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh, Animorphs, or anything else that doesn't belong to me. I only own this story.  
Chapter 15: ****Preparations**  
––––––––––**  
_A/N: This chapter has quite a lot of character perspective shifting between events that overlap - specifically between Serenity and Marik. Just try to bear with me...  
––––––––––_****  
**  
  
SERENITY

I was woken by Mai gently shaking me.  
"Wake up!"  
"Is... is it my turn to watch out for weirdoes now?"  
She laughed softly. "No; a dog just turned into Tristan out there... and he's inside the house now. I think I heard him knock someone out – we have to get out of here."  
I groaned, turning over in bed. "H–how? We can't just jump out the window!"

I'd tried to talk about escaping earlier – the window was too high above the ground for either of us to escape out of, and the intruder was downstairs; preventing us from escaping. But as usual, Mai had refused to listen to me. She had simply smiled in that way which suggests that the person smiling knows far more than you do, and told me that there _was _a way out of this mess. And when she'd taken Yugi's grandfather's ferret out of its cage and begun fawning over it, I'd known immediately that there was no hope of persuading her to explain things.

Now she glanced confidently outside. "What makes you think that _we'd_ be doing that?"  
"Mai–" She cut me off.  
"Here's the backup plan. You're not jumping, I promise." With a cheeky smile, she pulled out from under the bed a set of bedsheets, carefully knotted together to form a sort of makeshift rope. "I can lower you down."  
I took one end, and moved over to the window. "But what about you? How are you going to get down?" The guilty look on her face told me everything.  
"Mai, I'm not leaving if you're going to jump!"  
She laughed, and tied my end of the makeshift rope firmly around my waist. "Don't worry. I'll be _fine._"

The next thing I knew, I was being swept up in her arms and borne over to the bed, as only Mai could do.  
"Come on, now… Out you go."  
"But… _Mai!_ You're not going to–"  
"Yes, and you're going to catch me."  
"I'm going to – wait, no! You're heavier than me!"  
"Not when I jump, I won't be. It'll be a few minutes before I jump, though. Okay?"  
"Hey-"

She moved like a blur, sweeping me up again – and suddenly, I was dangling outside the window, clinging onto the 'rope' with one hand and the ledge with the other.  
"Mai…? I'm scared…"  
Her cheerful face appeared above me. "If you'd be so kind as to place your ledge hand on the rope…"  
Slowly, haltingly, I did as she asked – and fell.**  
**"AIEEEE!"**  
––––––––––****  
**MARIK

Duke fell back against the wall, unconscious. Before he'd even hit the floor, I had turned my gaze over to the real Tristan. To my surprise, it was far easier to take over his mind than before – he put up little resistance as I made him shift into a wolf.  
**  
**The other two I knocked out swiftly, tied up. One nod from me, and the wolf immediately seized Duke, dragging him away to his new home.

_Yes…_

The plan was indeed sound – even with the morphing ability, Duke and Tristan would never be able to escape the place I had selected for the two of them – or at least, not until it was too late. The only way Tristan would be leaving would be under my firm control – and I would only take him at night. I didn't want him fighting back, after all.

I glanced at the unconscious blonde at my feet. I could torture him all I liked now – only Ryo still roamed free. The kid was far too scared to come after me, and I had taught Bakura a good lesson. It would be easy to claim Serenity and Mai now.  
_Yes! Everything is perfec–_

"AIEEEE!"  
A noise, a sudden shriek from upstairs made me stop and smile to myself.  
_Well, well, well… so they put the girls upstairs, did they?_  
"I heard that!" I called up, then slowly made my way up the stairs, banging on the door. "Ahaha! There's no escape for you two!"

I slammed my full shoulder into the door again and again, smiling grimly as it eventually fell in under my new weight. I then strode in, preparing to confront-  
No–one.

"What the– Where'd you _go?_" I looked out the window, but saw no–one.  
_How odd…_  
––––––––––**  
****SERENITY**

With a jerk I stopped, hanging sideways in mid–air. From downstairs, I heard a shout, but tried to ignore it.  
"Sorry, there was some slack in the sheets!" Mai called down to me.  
"_Some?_" Looking up at her, I could see that I was halfway down the side of the house. The sheets were taut, and I didn't really want to think about what would happen if they were to rip-  
"Just hang on!"

I closed my eyes in terror as I began to move again, feeling the air rush past me, and my back touch the grass about ten seconds later. I stood as fast as I could, untying the rope and waiting patiently under the window for the blonde. Unfortunately, that was about when I became suddenly aware of a banging, fists pounding on wood. "Ahaha! There's no escape for you two!"

There was a loud crash from Yugi's bedroom, then a confused noise.  
"What the– Where'd you _go?_" I shrank against the wall of the house, flattening myself under the window ledge and praying that I wouldn't be seen.

Minutes passed, and Tristan seemed to be talking quietly to himself – then he suddenly began to cackle madly.

I shivered.  
––––––––––**  
****MARIK**

"Come out, come out, _wherever you are…_" I could feel Yami Marik's presence working alongside mine as I trod softly towards the bed, then peered under it. "_Come on…_"

Nothing. In response to the silence, I began to demorph, fur rushing over my neck, my arms, my face. "Looks like I'll have to _hunt you down, hmm?_" I licked my chops as the changes continued, a tail waving behind me – soon, I would be able to easily pinpoint wherever the girls were hiding. I dropped to all fours as my whole body began to lengthen, laughing wildly–

But then, from out of the closet, there was a flash of white fur, and sharp claws raked across my neck. I let out a canine yelp, stumbling forwards on legs that weren't quite human, but not quite dog either.  
–{Damn! Come back, ya liddle–}–  
Too late; it was gone, leaping out the still–open window. I snarled as I became more dog than human, running to the window myself as soon as I was able to...  
––––––––––**  
****SERENITY**

–{I don't know if you can hear this, but I'm going to jump now.}– Mai's voice rang out ever so clearly in the night air; even though it was being whispered from her hiding place in the room high above me. Even stranger was the fact that Tristan didn't react to her words, which given that he was still in Yugi's bedroom was distinctly bizarre – but there was no time to wonder how she was doing it. I stepped forwards and held out my arms – and from inside, there was a startled, very much non–human noise.

Something white and fluffy dropped into my arms. Frantically, I tried to drop it, but it scrambled onto my shoulder and clung there.  
_A… ferret?  
_There was a snarl of fury from above, as a dog appeared at the window, and howled to the sky. Something shrieked in my head…  
–{I'll… I'll kill you! _I'll kill you all!_}–  
And Mai's voice came again, from somewhere close to me: –{Run, Serenity, run!}–  
**––––––––––****  
****MARIK**

To my annoyance, the ferret was still alive, clinging onto the shoulder of a red–haired girl.  
_Serenity!_  
Filled with fury at the sight of my prey escaping, I raised my voice and howled.  
–{I'll… I'll kill you! _I'll kill you all!_}–

The girl must have heard me – as she instantly turned and ran, fleeing into the night. I readied myself to leap out the window after her, but suddenly I couldn't move. Dark spots filled my vision, and Yami Marik's voice broke into my head.  
_My turn._  
_Hey! This wasn't part of the plan!  
Heheh… What an idiot you are.  
Hey, don't–  
This isn't your fight anymore.  
But–_

I could only watch as my dark side went back downstairs, morphing to human as he did so. Throwing Yugi over his/my shoulder, and grabbing Joey by the wrists, he began to drag them to the warehouse, giggling wickedly as I began to drift into unconsciousness.  
_"Heheheh… Let the games begin!"  
_––––––––––_  
_**SERENITY**

Mai's cry of terror threw me into a state of instant panic, and without another thought, I bolted away from the shop as fast as my legs would carry me. Down street after darkened street I ran, until my chest ached, and I finally stopped with a sudden, horrible thought.

_Mai..._

_I left her back there!_

I fell to my knees, staring hopelessly at the ferret as it dropped into my lap. "What… What have I _done?_"  
For all I knew, Mai could be horribly injured. Maybe, right this minute, she was lying in a gutter–  
–{Serenity… Can you hear me? It's me, Mai.}–

There was no denying it this time – the blonde's voice was inside my head, yet Mai herself was nowhere to be seen.  
"Hey, get off me." I stood suddenly, determined to get the animal off, but the ferret held on for dear life, running up my shirt and climbing onto my shoulder. Still trying to shake it off, I looked around for Mai; but the little animal chattered angrily, clinging onto me with all its might. I scowled and reached for it, but it sprinted onto my neck and bit down.  
"Oww!"  
–{Stop trying to get rid of me, will you?}–  
I froze. "Mai?"  
–{Yeah, I'm a ferret.}– The rodent made its way back to my shoulder, then relaxed and stretched on my arm, seemingly admiring itself. –{Well… It looks like my idea worked.}–  
"You based your escape on an _idea?_"  
–{Don't be silly. I tested it out while you were asleep.}–  
I groaned. "And this idea was…?"  
–{Whoever touches the blue box can morph.}–  
"So, that means that the resistance must have…" I blinked. "Wait, so I can…" I trailed off, and Mai's laughter echoed inside my head.  
–{Yup. Come on, let's head home.}–  
––––––––––**_  
_**After a long walk, we arrived at my house. From across the road, I eyed up the shattered front door. "That took a beating, didn't it?"  
Crossing the street, I went to walk over, but Mai instantly stopped me, one paw tapping frantically on my shoulder. –{Wait. Don't go in… I can _hear_ someone!}–  
I backed away from the driveway instantly, retreating into the shadow of a large tree. "Really?"  
–{Yes. Listen!}–

I waited a moment, and sure enough, I could hear someone talking inside.  
"H–hello…?"

The ferret growled, a ridiculous noise to be coming from a tiny ball of fur. –{It's Ryo.}–  
"Now what?" I muttered, and Mai snickered.  
–{Let's scare him out. After all, he scared us, so…}–

**––––––––––****_  
_**RYO

Someone picked up the phone on the second ring, and I gulped. "H–hello…?"  
The handset crackled eerily, then suddenly whoever had picked it up at the other end hung up with a loud bang.  
_Maybe it's just the power cutting out._

I tried again, but received nothing but the answering machine: _"You called the Moto family… Unavailable… Please leave a message…"_  
The third time, the phone went dead.

I made my way out of the accursed place as fast as I possibly could, but even that didn't comfort me in the least. I could see now that there was more blood outside, spattered on the steps leading up to the doorway. As I stared at the awful mess outside,  
I tried my hardest to calm my breathing.

_W–what happened?_

That was when the laughter started. A soft chuckle at first, before it developed into something stronger, resonating all around me.  
I winced, trying desperately not to panic. "B–Bakura, don't _do_ that!"  
Finally, my dark side spoke – he sounded tired. _That… isn't me._

"Then… this laughter… in–inside my head…" I could feel my muscles stiffening in terror, and dropped to my knees with a whimper. "N–no… not… Not M–marik…" I held my head in both hands, trying desperately to ignore the laughter. "Please… no… no…"  
_Not Marik. He's gotta be tired by now; and besides… That prick would have a speech prepared._  
"Then… who else?"  
_How the hell would I know? _

–{Ryoooooo…}–_  
_"Eeeep!" I yelped and spun as I best could, given that I was on my knees. "Wha… What was _that?_"

_That… That must have been thought–speak._

Suddenly, the laughter died.  
_ Ryo, morph. Now._  
"I… I can't…" It was true; I had only really morphed once by myself, and it had been extremely difficult for me… and that was in a perfectly calm and quiet situation, with Tristan encouraging me! I was unused to it, and it had been hard enough for me to shift the first time – let alone attempting it in a chaotic situation like this…

_I don't care about that! We need to get out of here! _  
"Look, I–I c…can't do it!"  
_You've demorphed plenty of times – morphing's no different! Just focus on an animal!_

"How about _you_ do it, then?", I returned.  
_No. I am too tired. It's all I can do to talk to you – morph, now!  
_  
I tried to gather my focus… but on what? Morphing Marik would not be a good choice, and pigeons didn't have good night vision. Definitely not the Komodo Dragon; if that thing took me over…

_Well, that only leaves you with one choice. _

"Y–yes…"  
_  
_I gulped, closed my eyes – and a hand fell on my shoulder.  
"I wouldn't try that if I were you."  
I knew that voice well; too well. "Oh… no…"  
"Seriously, don't even think about it."  
I gathered myself up hurriedly, suddenly feeling awkward as I faced the blonde woman.  
"Think about… Th–think about _what?_"  
"Falling asleep on the floor. You're tired, but here's not the place."  
"But–"  
"Why are you in my friend's house?", she growled, calmly removing Serenity's diary from my hand. "And why were you reading things that were, quite frankly, _none of your business?_"  
"Umm… uh… I mean–"  
"Ryo!"

I turned, to see Serenity walk through the doorframe, carefully stepping over splintered remains of door.  
"Uh… Hi?"  
Joey's sister blinked, then looked away as soon as she recognized the stains on my shirt. "You look exhausted."  
I couldn't help it – I let loose with a huge yawn. "Yeah... It's been a long day."

Mai smiled at me. "Tell you what, why don't you stay the night with us? Someone's after us, after all. There's safety in numbers, you know."  
I tried to protest, but my body was weak and drained. "That's… uh, very true, but–"

The blonde just laughed, and steered me up the stairs – and before I knew it, I was rapidly falling asleep in Joey's room, holding the blue box under my shirt close to my chest.

And a little voice in my head said, _Mine… All mine…  
_––––––––––  
**DUKE**  
"Wakey wakey."  
"Marik…" I opened one eye, and groaned. "You're a bastard."  
The Egyptian looked a little offended – and the brunette beside him looked like he was sleep–walking. "Hey, what did you expect? I'm nothing if not cruel."  
I rubbed my jaw, wincing at the pain. The two of us were in a coliseum, red staining the sand. Crowds of people were in the seats circling high above us. This was the final battle, and I knew it.

"So… I suppose you've got something to ask me, before I lose any sense of individuality and become yet another brainwashed pawn?"  
"Yeah, actually... You wouldn't happen to know where Ryo is, would you?" Marik paused. "Seriously, he's really important."  
"No."  
"Thought not. Oh well, I guess I'll get the full collection eventually" Smiling cheerfully, he reached out for me with the Rod –

But before the Item could touch me, I'd lashed out with both legs, striking him neatly in the chest. He went flying, grunted, Tristan cheered, the audience roared – and then I was on him, sharp claws sprouting from my fingernails to tear out his organs with. I laughed, a horrible cackle, and with a sickening lurch realized that I was enjoying this.

And suddenly, it was the dead face of _Tristan_staring up at me. A foot came down hard on my back, and then I was looking at the ceiling, suddenly a weak human. Marik laughed, and suddenly part of the Rod clattered to the floor, revealing a sharp blade. He stabbed down, and–

"_Wakey wakey, Duke!_"  
"Ahhhh!"  
Tristan smiled down at me. "_Hey, it's just me. See, I brought you breakfast._"

I blinked away a haze of sleep, rubbing at my eyes; Marik was gone. Tristan was very much alive, and stiffly setting down a tray of toast and orange juice in front of me. Weirdly, the brunette was not wearing his morphing outfit, but a suit – plus, there was something artificial about his voice. And I was no longer in an arena, but in a room with a hard floor and plain white walls, my left ankle chained to the floor. There were three bolts over the door, and a security camera watching me from the ceiling, well out of my reach. A loudspeaker crackled to itself high above me.

_So, it was just a dream… or more correctly, a horrible nightmare._ _Still, since_ _the reality's probably way worse than any of that._

A more nasty thought came to me, as I stared at the unblinking teen. "Tristan… What happened to me? I didn't... I wasn't brainwashed, was I?"  
Tristan shuddered and blinked, his voice suddenly more natural. "I… I don't know."  
"Well, did you lose control to him?"  
He frowned. "Yes… but I don't really remember what I did. It's really odd, but I was sleeping, right? And then I had this dream about becoming a wolf, and dragging you and Joey and Yugi to… I dunno, somewhere… But I didn't take any of you to the same place. I took you here last. A nice boy gave me a steak… And a not–so–nice man tried to make me give it back… And then I was human, coming here to give you breakfast… At least, I think I was." The brunette stared hopelessly at the tray. "Yeah, I was… I was coming here."

I looked around at the walls. "Where _is _here?"  
"I wish I knew", he yawned. "It's at the end of a white corridor, that's all I know."  
"You're sure you don't remember any little details about the building?"  
He closed his eyes. "I can remember a big flashing sign out the front… Lots of screens inside… And there's this one smell… Hey, maybe if I was a wolf, I'd remember better." His hair immediately went from a short dark brown to a shaggy silver, and I was quick to stop him from continuing.  
"No. You're low on energy as it is – I don't want you losing control to the wolf's mind. I mean, I could do _without_ being attacked today. Maybe if you actually got some sleep, you'd remember some more."  
Tristan smiled, and his hair returned to normal. "Yeah… I guess."

I yawned and stretched, standing up and rolling my shoulders a few times before sitting back down and grabbing a piece of toast. "Looks like we're stuck here, until whoever trapped us in here decides to let us out."  
"Guess we wait, then?"  
"No. You sleep. _I'll_ wait."  
––––––––––**  
JOEY**

"Where is he?"  
I groaned, opening one eye to find a blurry Tristan towering over me. "Tris…? Whad de…"

"Just answer the question, Joey. Where is he?" _  
_  
"Where's who?" I tried to move, to stand up, but I couldn't – my hands were tied behind my back with what felt like a thick rope, and my ankles were tied as well. I could still turn my head, however…

"Ryo."  
I wasn't listening – too busy glancing around my surroundings. I was in a deserted warehouse, abandoned and dusty shelves along one wall. There was a crane hook hanging from the ceiling, where those thugs tried to hang Yugi by his Puzzle; though that was way back. I could see the spot where we freed Marik from the Yeerk in his head, even the dog crate where we held him and trapped him as a Pharaoh Hound...

And Yugi, tied and gagged in the corner. He looked like he'd taken quite a beating.  
_Man, I hope the others are alright.  
_  
Tristan crouched to my level. "Answer me."  
"Eh? What did you ask m–"  
"_Where is Ryo?_"  
I blinked, confused – for an instant, Tristan's voice had sounded strange and sinister. "Ah… ah dunno."  
My best friend looked faintly amused. "_Really_, Joey?"  
"Yah, really!" My eyes narrowed. "Why doncha untie me? That brat Marik, he culd'ave done _anythin'!_"  
"Joey… You _know_what you did."

With a yawn, my best friend began to walk away.  
"H–hey! Com' bak'ere! Whaddya _doing?_Lemme go!"

Tristan turned back to me, and long canine fangs sprouted suddenly from his gums. "Shut up."  
"Tri–"  
"Seriously, shut up. I don't have an ounce of respect for you right now." I scanned his face for signs of mind control, but he didn't seem to be under Marik's influence at all. And yet, here he was, saying these things...  
"Hey, whad happen'd? I thought we were friends–"  
"You're not my _friend_. Not anymore."

And with that, he walked away.

He didn't look back.


	18. Ch 16: Trapped

**Disclaimer: Don't own any of YGO or Animorphs. Insert your own "But if I did…" joke here.  
Yugimorphs Chapter Sixteen: Trapped  
**–––––––––  
**DUKE**

Things were quiet for a long time after that – I had no clue how long. It could have been anywhere from three to seven hours, before the door to the cell slid open, and a man in a suit strode in with another tray, sandwiches and a small clock balanced on it. He didn't take his eyes off us, keeping the gun in his other hand trained on my chest as he lowered the tray. "Lunch."  
"Where are we?", I asked, but he said nothing. "What's the clock for?"  
"Master says that you two need to maintain regular sleeping patterns, if the experiments are to be accurate."  
"Eh? What experiments? Who's Master? What are you gonna d–"

The only answer I got was the pneumatic hiss of the door as it slid shut once more. I slumped against the wall with a hmph, not really feeling hungry. "Well, he was informative."  
Tristan shrugged. "They're guards. They aren't usually very talkative."  
"What do you reckon he meant by 'experiments'?" A grunt was the only response I got out of the brunette.  
"…Yeah, I don't really wanna know either."

**RYO**  
I woke up, only to find that I was still cuddling the blue box – my personal voice giggling maniacally.  
_Mine… Mine…_  
"Qu–quiet!" I rolled out of bed, placing the box on the bedside table. With a sigh, I began to dig through Joey's cupboards, looking for something clean to wear – or at least something that would cover the stains on my clothing. It took time and careful searching, but eventually I did find jeans that fitted reasonably well – even if they did fall over my feet. In the end, I had to give up on searching for a tight shirt that I could actually morph in, pulling on a loose shirt of Joey's instead.

"So, what now?"

Bakura growled. _I do not trust them. After all, they seem to know many things… Too much.  
_I frowned. "What do you mean by that?"  
_They saw me morph._  
I froze. "When?"  
_Last night. _His voice hardened. _They are bound to tell all their friends, of course. _  
"Anzu…"  
_Yes. Come, now. Do you really want to be running for the rest of your life?  
_"Well, no… I mean, what can I do?"  
_Lots. For example…  
_  
I could feel him clawing his way into my mind, trying to wrestle control from me.  
"Wait! What are you going to–"  
_Sleep. That's a good host, hmm?_

**YAMI BAKURA**

It was the work of a moment to take my host's body over once more. Deciding to keep a low profile, I flawlessly imitated him – just as I had done a million times before.  
"Come here, you two." Taking my Millennium Ring out from under my shirt, I held it out towards them. "I've got something to show you."  
Mai walked over, Serenity following after a brief hesitation.  
_Heh heh… Idiots._

With that gentle, slightly sad smile that was so characteristic of Ryo, I held out my other hand, showing them the two figurines. I was being kind today – a tiny black dragon and a winged warrior nestled in my palm. "Here. These are for you."  
_Hah. This is for annoying me last night._  
"Yeah…?"  
Serenity took the dragon, Mai the little elf. The redhead studied the black scales and ferocious teeth carefully. "It's very detailed… What are these for?"

Immediately, I allowed my appearance to change, my act to crumble into nothing._"Those are for your souls! Soul Seal!"_ The Ring flashed around my neck – for an instant, I felt the two of them fighting against my immense power. I lashed out, and it was all over in seconds. With a giggle, I decided to let my host see what I had done.  
_Oh, Ryooo…?_

**SERENITY**

When my vision returned, Ryo was huge, staring down at me in horror. "No… Not again…"  
I blinked. "Ryo? I tried to say, but my voice came out as a series of growls instead. I tried to yell, but that only made me roar.  
There was a yelp from next me, and I turned to find a rather pretty winged female, in a full set of armor. She was staring dumbly at me, her jaw hanging open. "_Akra? Ser?_"  
I shook my head, trying to indicate that I couldn't understand what she was saying.  
"Rarrr, grawr…?"

That was when I broke off, staring at my feet.

Huge, black talons, each of my three toes ending in a wickedly sharp, silver claw. Black scales wrapping up my ankles, around strong legs that bent strangely. Frantically, I inspected the rest of my body, and everywhere it was the same story. A pair of sleek black wings over each shoulder. Three clawed, stubby fingers, arms that were way too short in comparison to my human body. My neck was long enough to twist over my shoulder to see the set of jet – black spikes all down my back, and a long tail lashing behind me.  
"RRrrr!?"

_I'm a… a dragon…  
_  
I glanced over at the elf, who was frantically trying to talk to me. When I shook my head again, she patted my back, then mimed riding a horse – and with as best a nod as I could managed, I moved onto all fours. As soon as the elf had boarded, she slapped my neck. To my surprise, I felt another mind react to the sensation – my wings beat automatically, and I flew up off the table, circling around the pale boy's head. The elf rode on my back, waving her sword at him and yelling more words I couldn't understand.  
"Ryo, it's me!" , I tried to yell, but again it came out as a screech.

The boy paled when he saw me take off – something I would not have thought possible given his skin tone – and his hands clenched into fists. "Damn, it's always the same! Every time…" He lifted something off the floor, holding in it his arms. "I– I mean…" With a jolt, I realized that he was holding an unconscious girl – a slim thing, long, fiery red hair that clashed horribly with her sickly pale skin –  
_That's ME!_

With a roar, I dived on Ryo, sitting on his head and tearing at his bangs until he put my body down._  
You… you killed me? No… No…_

Poking Ryo with her sword, the elf said something that was utterly incomprehensible – and Ryo shook his head. "N–no…"

The movement threw me off, so I flapped my way onto his open palm, allowing my passenger to disembark.  
"You two…" For a second, Ryo's eyes flashed murder, voice full of bravado. _"You didn't know what you were getting in_– n–no… Mai… S–serenity…_"_ He shook his head, bit his lip. "Y–you would be in danger if I let you go. You're s–safer li–like this."  
_Mai?_

I blinked and looked at the elf, who smiled and petted my head – before she marched over to the pale boy's wrist and began hitting it with her (admittedly blunt) sword in response, yelling what were presumably obscenities. Ryo winced and dropped us on the spot. "D–don't do that!"

Mai – for it could only have been Mai – screamed something at him in reply, and Ryo looked shocked. "I – I can't let you guys g–get _killed_. Or… or… w–worse…" My friend argued back, but eventually the pale teen shrugged and turned away.  
"Look, I need to get you out of this place. Marik may be after all three of us, but he's especially interested in you two." He laughed then – an evil cackle that could only have come from Yami Bakura. _"Besides, I can take care of myself…"_

**YAMI BAKURA  
**  
Tipping the two protesting miniatures off my palm and onto the table, I helped myself to a hearty breakfast – carefully stepping over the unconscious bodies of the ladies as I maneuvered around the kitchen. The miniatures were at first confused about what had happened to them, which was rather amusing to watch. They created plenty of hilarity at the table, of course – tripping over spoons, trying to upset my bowl of cornflakes, Serenity flying around in circles and crashing into the fan repeatedly. Mai even attempted to attack me a few times – but the whole situation was all under my control. I only had to will it, and they would freeze in place – tiny, immobile statues once more.

As always, there were a few snags with my generic figures – if I wanted something more permanent, I would need to make specific figures for each of the girls. For instance, the dragon – Serenity, I reminded myself – couldn't seem to speak in anything other than a collection of assorted growls and snarls, whilst the winged warrior appeared to be speaking in fluent Egyptian. For another thing, Mai's sword was a flimsy rectangle of plastic – although that was probably a good thing for now, since she seemed to be rather taken to poking me with it. Serenity's throat had a tiny bubble of plastic in it that was nonetheless making it impossible for her to breathe fire. And the elf's wings were too small to allow flight for long distances.

Suddenly, Mai Kujaku decided to interrupt my reverie by landing on me. She made a terrible fuss, dancing about on my wrist and flapping her useless wings in a fury. "What did you _do_ to us, Bakura?"  
I yawned, gesturing with my head to the bodies on the floor. _"Rehoused your souls."_  
"Well, give me my body back!"  
_"No. You know too much, Mai Kujaku…"_She immediately leapt at my face, but froze and fell.

The dragon growled – whether in mutiny or confusion, I couldn't tell – then blew a lazy smoke ring. Mai landed on her head, but still got gamely to her feet as soon as I allowed her to move.  
"So, _now_what are you going to do with us?"

I focused, letting myself sink back into my own mind, letting my host out of his sleep.  
_Here, you deal with them!_

**RYO  
**Mai let out an annoyed little squeak when she saw me. "Fine, you be like that! …So, Ryo. I'll ask you again; what are we going to do now?"  
"Uh…" Fortunately, an idea came to me. "You two need some b–better figures…"  
The dragon made a rather sarcastic snorting noise, as if to say '_You don't say?_', and I smiled gently at it. "Sorry."  
"What about Marik?" , Mai wondered, hopping up and down.  
I took a deep breath. "M–Marik can wait."  
The winged warrior tilted her head, eyeing me carefully. "Can he?"  
I hung my head. "You know… I never wanted to get involved in this. I–I may as well stay at home."  
"But–"  
I rounded on her. "I'm _useless_, you hear? I can't fight! Heck, I can't even morph! And he's… He's a total m–monster!"  
_"That being said… You've got a monster on your side." _Bakura bared my teeth in a nasty smile._"That someone being me, of course."_

The dragon whimpered at that, and I yelped. "S–stop!"  
_Face it. I can be a big help to you. Let you do whatever you like. Stop Marik… Stop the Yeerks… Take over the world…_  
"N–no…" With a shiver, I picked up the two miniatures, focusing a moment, and feeling them both go stiff in my hand. A moment later, and they were in my pocket. "Sorry." I didn't like doing that, but I didn't want them to get broken, either.  
_Don't you like having power over them like that? I do. It's a lovely feeling, power…_

Ignoring the taunt, I headed out into the street. Get home, make some better miniatures… and then what?

Somewhere in the back of my mind, a tiny spark ignited – an idea.

**DUKE**

Tristan lapsed into silence, eventually drifting off to sleep during the late afternoon of our first day of imprisonment. I eyed him with envy – I knew that there was only so long one could stare at plain white walls before they started to worry, to think about their situation. He had found escape in sleep, but I had no such luck. I was worried about this whole 'experiment' aspect to our problem, but what scared me even more was the shackles on my leg, the way the guard had pointed his gun at me – and only me.

_Why am I the bigger threat, compared to him? They know that Tristan can become a wolf, so why would they be more worried about me?  
Also, why does he have a suit? Is he working for them now?_

Why are they keeping me here? Is this some plan of Marik's? Wait, who is the Master? Who are these people, anyway? Controllers? Marik–controlled slaves? Some organization I've never heard of? What experiments are they planning?

_And what about the others?_ _Yugi, Joey… Serenity and Mai… What's happened to all of them? Heck, is Marik all right?_

The thoughts turned over and over in my head, gradually becoming darker as they did so. By the time the clock hit 8pm, and the whole room was plunged into darkness, lit only but the soft glow of the digital clock's screen, I knew that I'd never be able to sleep.

At first, it seemed that Tristan was unable to sleep as well. As soon as the lights went out, his head jerked up off the floor with a loud _crack_. I automatically sniggered at his clumsiness. "Once a klutz, always a klutz, eh?"

That was when I realized that his eyes had changed – now they were a deep amber, the pupils having shrunk to slits. "…Tristan?"  
He didn't answer, just lay back down. My chain would not allow me to walk over and touch him; so I grabbed a handful of coat and, with an effort, pulled him closer to me. "Can you hear me?"

He remained silent, staring uncomprehendingly into space.  
_Perhaps he is sick.  
_I frowned and rolled him over, laying one hand on his forehead, the other going to my own. "That's odd. You don't seem to have a tem–"

Tristan let out a gurgling moan, and the skin under my fingers suddenly prickled. I jerked back instantly, watching as his whole body began to twitch uncontrollably. "Hey, what are you doi…" I trailed off, staring at the dark patch on his forehead.  
_Fur.  
No… no…_

I could only watch in entranced horror as the boy stood once more, his eyes remaining glassy and unseeing even as his face began to twist and reform into a muzzle. With jerky movements, Tristan took off his jacket, and I could immediately see that he had grown taller – since his shirt had slid upwards, revealing more fur growing down his lower spine. His arms grew longer, fingers sprouting claws, shoulders shifting forwards, the muscles rippling and bulging until his shirt tore. His back followed his upper torso alarmingly fast, quickly becoming stooped with the effort of trying to carry heavy wolf muscles on a frail human frame not yet ready for them. Fur spread over his new muzzle as it reached its full length, his ears already pointed and moving up his head.  
For a moment, he stopped, and we stared at each other. Something pulled at my thoughts, wanting me to follow his actions, to morph with him – but I instantly steeled my mind against it. The sensation was only fleeting, however it was horrible enough to make me shudder in response, breaking the stare–off.

With a feral growl, Tristan ripped his trousers off, with hands part–human and part–wolf, to reveal rapidly shriveling legs that grew darker as they sprouted fur. He fell over as his weight shifted further forwards, eventually coming to stand on all fours as his knees shifted direction, back flattened out, hands and feet made the final transition into full wolf paws. A bushy tail extended out behind him, and it was all over.

I was trapped in a small room with my friend, who happened to be a wolf that may or may not have been in control of its instincts. With my left leg chained to the floor.

_Uh–oh._

I flattened myself back against the wall as the canine glanced at me, too scared to say anything smartass for once; but it only pattered away towards the door.

_Click._ The door slid open, and the wolf walked outside into the pitch–black corridor outside. It paused a moment, gazing at me – and something tugged at my mind, telling me to go with him… but again, I resisted._  
Click._ The door slid shut, leaving me with the rags of the clothes that my friend had torn apart in the changes. I laid my head against the wall, exhausted yet unable to sleep.  
_Tristan… What happened to you?_

**YUGI MOTO**  
"Hey, Yugi!" Tristan laughed down at me, dangling the Puzzle above my head. "What do reckon happens whe– Hey, wake up!"  
He landed a kick in my side, his voice suddenly twisted and vicious. _"Don't you see? I'm not done with you yet!"_  
"S–stop… Please…"  
_"Hah! That's right! Beg like a dog!"_  
I looked him in the eye. "You're not my Tristan. Give him back, Marik!"  
He spat in my face. _"Tristan's no longer available. Please leave a message after the tone."_  
"In fact, you're not even Marik…" I closed my eyes as the brunette before me began to shrivel away, red–brown fur sprouting from every pore. "How long have you been impersonating him, Yami Marik?"

There was a long pause, before the unmistakable voice of Yami Marik filled my ears. "_Oh, don't say 'impersonating'! I've simply been… shall we say, 'influencing' Marik? Yes, 'influencing'. I like that word._"  
I opened one eye, just in time to see his ears shrink to a more normal size. "How long?"  
_"Ever since Battle City. I'm nearly ready to take him altogether." _His face broke into a huge grin. _"Free!"_  
"Marik, I know you can hear me! Please–!"  
_"That's enough!" _Yami Marik brought the Rod down on my head with an ugly _crack_ as it made contact with my skull. A blinding pain went right through me, and I fell back with a yelp. He towered over me, imposing, cackling as I blacked out.  
And for a horrible moment, his voice seemed to became Joey's.  
_"See ya later, Yug'…"_

**DUKE**  
"_Wakey wakey!_" Tristan stopped and shook his head in confusion. "Wait, wha–?"  
I sighed as the door closed behind him, repeating what he had said the day before. "You brought me breakfast."  
"How did you…?"He stared at the tray, then sat down very suddenly. "I had one of those dreams again. I turned into a wolf."  
I handed him back his torn shirt. "That was no dream. You morphed last night, as soon as the lights went out. You looked like you were sleepwalking or something – it scared the living daylights out of me."  
He blinked, then his eyes widened. "Then… that means... that… What have I _done?_" I tilted my head in confusion.  
_Were those… tears?_

"What's wrong?"  
"I…" He turned away from me, head bowed. "Last night, I beat up Joey."  
"You… you _what?_"

But he would say nothing more.

**DUKE**  
Now, things began to settle once again into a routine – a somewhat bizarre routine, but a routine nonetheless. Every day now, I would be taken to another blank room, told to morph cat. There were men in white coats who watched over it all, always accompanied by black–suited guards. The first time, I was timed, and blood samples were taken from me – both as a human, and as a cat – and then, the experiments began. They made me morph at gunpoint, again and again, just to see how much it drained me. They made me morph in loose clothing, they made me morph in shackles, they made me attempt to control my morph… It went and on and on. The morphing was draining my strength, slowly but surely – at least Tristan wasn't being put through all that I was. If he had been put through it all, in addition to involuntarily becoming a wolf every night and going off to torture my friends… well, he might have snapped.

I kept a silent vigil over him in the afternoons and in the evenings, watching over him and napping occasionally. I couldn't afford to sleep properly – the tugs at my mind were getting stronger and stronger. In my heart, I knew it was useless to resist – eventually, I would be forced to give in to him… but I still didn't want it to happen. Tristan didn't seem to have any real choice in the matter – but as long as I had the option to refuse to morph, I would.

On the sixth night, I felt like I was on the verge of breaking. Slumped back against the wall, I raised my eyes to the ceiling, raising my thoughts in a silent prayer.  
_Just… one more night… Please…_

I had already been taken off guard the night before, almost morphing cougar as I dozed. It had taken all my strength to push the call away, force myself to become human. It was only a matter of time now, before I broke altogether.  
_Before I… hurt my friends…_

I could feel myself falling asleep, but I was too tired to resist.  
_Everyone… I'm sorry…_

My thoughts descended into darkness, and I slept.

**SERENITY  
**I woke, stretching my jaws in a yawn. Ryo was towering over me once again, looking worried. "Are you alright? I didn't hurt you?"  
"No…" I blinked. "I can talk!"  
He smiled. "Yeah… I've been repairing you and Mai."  
I stretched one wing, noting how fluidly it moved. "How… How long has it been?"  
Ryo looked away, bangs hiding his face. "Uh… A few hours?"  
The winged elf came strutting over, a scowl firmly on her painted features. "Come off it!"  
Ryo sighed. "Okay, it's been six days."  
"_Days?!_"  
He nodded. "Yeah. I've got a plan, but I needed you two to be ready." The boy smiled, a smile that didn't quite reach his eyes. "It took a while."

I decided to ignore it. "Us? Ready for what?"  
Mai bounced. "We're _finally_ gonna go rescue the others, aren't we?"  
The pale teen leaned against the wall, once–innocent features suddenly sharp and accented. "Yes. But there's a few conditions…"

**DUKE**  
_I am a cougar; running, slicing apart enemies, claws going through them like a knife goes through warm butter. A tan blur sidles up alongside me, and for a glorious moment, we run together – but then, everything stops.  
A lion, king of the beasts, stands before me; proud, yet somehow sad. A beautiful golden mane streams behind him, as though caught in a breeze. I bow automatically. He tilts his head at me, and a voice sends shivers down my spine._

"Great, I found you. Now, let's head back…"

Images flash before my eyes.  
Yugi… unconscious, in the warehouse that we first de–Yeerked Marik. Joey, threatened by a thing that shifts constantly between Tristan and a wolf. Beaten by the fists of his own friend, his clothes torn by sharp teeth, I can only watch as Joey finally breaks, cries out…

Marik is there too, laughing wildly as he watches the blonde suffer. Sometimes, he is Tristan as well.

But something… something is wrong in those purple eyes. He looks like Marik, but something… it sticks out oddly, and just doesn't feel like Marik. The psychotic laugh, the way his smile seems more creepy than genuine… The way that he stands, the way he licks his chops…  
It's all so close… but not quite. Marik, yet not Marik.

"That's right."

I realize with a jolt that I'm in a movie theatre. We're not in just any old cinema, though – this is where Marik, Tristan, and I were nearly unmasked by Mokuba. That day seems so far away now, even though it could only have been a week since the encounter.

A hand lands on my shoulder – and turning, I see him. "What the…"  
"Duke, listen to me – this is a dream. But it might not be, next time."  
"What do you mean by–"  
The Egyptian sighs, running his fingers through his hair for a moment. "Look. Other me's trying to take you, and it's all I can do to hold him off." He grins, even as colour starts to fade from his features. "Hey, I'll be all right. Don't worry – it's important that I showed you what you needed to see. Did you see all of the movie?" His voice is urgent; the sort of tone that encourages me to not make a witty response for once.  
"Y–yeah, I think so. What was that?"  
"Those were my memories. Just the ones about what's happening to Yugi, Joey and I right now."  
"And Ryo, too?"  
"No… He's not with me or Yami Marik. I haven't got a clue where he is." Marik begins to dissolve into grey smoke. "See ya."  
"But…!"  
His face becomes serious. "Be strong. It's gotta be all over someday…"

I woke.  
–––––––––


	19. Ch 17: Cruel and Unusual

******Disclaimer: Spooner no write YGO. Or Animorphs. She wishes that she had, though. Sometimes - and then she thinks about all the angry fan mail, and she's grateful that she _didn't _write either of those serieses...**

Yugimorphs, Chapter Seventeen: Cruel and Unusual

**YAMI BAKURA**

I took control from my host with ease, leering at the two miniatures on the table. _"Allow me to put it this way: I know things about you that you wouldn't want anyone to know about, and I believe you could say exactly the same thing to me. Plus, you definitely want to get back to your bodies. Correct?"_

Mai considered this for a moment."…Correct, I suppose."

Serenity remained silent – at least someone knew what was good for her.

_"In which case, I propose a deal of sorts: You help me to rescue those idiots from whatever situation they have managed to get themselves into. You are not to talk about my… shall we say, 'ability'…to anyone else."_

One eyebrow arched, and I honestly had to admire Mai's nerve. "Ability? Care to share?"

With a growl, I allowed myself to begin changing into the Komodo Dragon, admiring the scales as they came sliding across my suddenly clawed hands. _"This, naturally. You've seen that before."_

The dragon gaped and backed away, and Mai seemed to be finding it hard to hold her ground. It was tempting to terrify them some more – very tempting, in fact – but I needed to be diplomatic for now. With an effort, I reversed the changes. _ "You distance yourself from Anzu Mazaki, stay well clear of the group known as 'The Sharing', and you are definitely not to tell anyone about the Yeerks, the Andalites. And in return, I will put your souls back in your bodies, and I won't tell anyone that you know what you do."_I glared at the two miniatures, daring them to ask a question. _"Well?"_

At last, Serenity spoke up. "Not even The Resistance?"

I laughed it off easily. _"Is that what you call me?"_

Mai growled. "Come off it. We know full well that there were five teenagers at the construction site that night."

I grinned psychotically. _"There were, yes. It was a pity the other four weren't smart enough to get out of the way when the Yeerks landed."_

"You mean…?"

_"Flat as pancakes, naturally. Incinerated when the craft flew back up into the air."_

The winged warrior looked me right in the eye. "And how do we know we can trust you to put us back in our bodies?"

I grinned. _"You don't. But it's the only chance you've got."_

"Fine. Deal. But after this, we don't have to work for you or anything."

As I returned control back to my host, I couldn't resist one last jibe: "My dear Mai… I wouldn't _dream_ of ever wanting to work with you."

**RYO  
**I gently picked up the two figurines, focusing on them for a moment. A shiver went down my spine as they froze, and I felt awful… even though they_had_ agreed to this.

"R–ready…" I whispered, and Yami Bakura laughed.

_You could always just think at me. _

I bowed my head, muttering furiously. "I–it's not like a–anyone's… w–watching…"

_Shut up – I need to concentrate here!_

Inside my mind, I could feel the spirit building his concentration, getting ready for the next part of the plan. It took him a long while before he managed to untangle his soul from around mine,gather enough mental energy to make his move–

It happened without warning. With a jerk, Yami Bakura left my mind, forcing his soul into the plastic snake in front of us. The toy began to spasm on the table, jerks slowly evolving into smoother movements as the spirit figured out what moved what inside the toy. Eventually, it slithered over to me – I instinctively recoiled, and it reared up angrily, hissing like a kettle.

"Hsssssaaah!"

Fortunately, we'd gone over the planwell before Yami Bakura had left my mind, just in case we were unable to communicate vocally.I rolled up my sleeve, placed my hand palm down on the table, and tried not to whimper as the snake slid up my arm, wrapping plastic coils tightly around my wrist. I pulled my jacket back over it, took a deep breath – and walked out the door.

* * *

**DUKE**  
"Wakey wakey!"

Surprisingly enough, that wasn't actually Tristan. No, this voice was far higher pitched, almost childlike. Come to think of it, it _was_ rather childlike…

Someone shook me roughly. "I said _wake up_, Kitty! And that means wake up!"

I opened one eye, to find it faced with a perfect view of a gun barrel. The other eye showed exactly the same thing.

"Gh…"

"Like I said: Wakey wakey." The weapon retreated away from my face, and I stared at the wielder of the gun, trying to figure out what the heck their name was. What had Marik called him the last time we'd met? Muppet? Mook?

"Uh… Hi?"

The dark–haired boy didn't look amused. "That's Mokuba to you, Kitty. Mokuba _Kaiba_." He spat out the last word, as though it were little more than dirt to him. I felt like banging my head on the wall for not remembering his name, but I needed to remain suave. He _was_ holding a gun, after all.

"Of course…" I squinted up at him. "So, does Kaiba know I'm here?"

A harsh laugh. "No. He's not _my_ big brother anymore. Not after whatever it was that you _did_ to him!"

I shot a helpless look at Tristan, who shook his head ever so slightly from his position behind the boy. Mokuba laughed, catching my expression. "Oh, I know that you weren't the only one, Kitty. Yami Marik explained everything to me."

I heard a sharp intake from behind the kid, and decided to change the subject before Tristan could try anything dumb. "What's wrong with Kaiba?"

"What's wrong? WHAT'S WRONG?! Seriously, what _isn't_?! Big brother's not even making games anymore!" Mokuba's grip tightened on the gun, and I winced. "Just meeting after meeting!"

"I thought he already tended to do that."

"BUT NOT WITH THE CUB SCOUTS!" The boy's voice went very soft after that, and I shivered – and not just because Tristan was quietly changing forms behind the kid's back, regardless of how many disapproving faces I pulled at him. "He's doing all this charity work, because some _other_ company told him to. Kaiba Corp's being made a mockery of! Big brother's a marionette!"

I froze for several seconds – a horrible, horrible idea had just come into my head.

_Puppets…_

Tristan was mid–morph; I had to keep Mokuba distracted. I thought fast. "What is the name of this company?"

"The Sharing." Mokuba shook his head in disbelief. "Big brother keeps on asking me to join, but I never will! That's group's for–"

I sat up properly, pushing my back up against the wall. "You've got to let us see Kaiba. _Now._"

For an instant, I thought that he might waver – but then he straightened with a snarl. "Never! Not big brother… Not after what you did to him. What could you do, make things even worse before you die?"

"Before I _what?_"

Mokuba held up a sheet of paper with a triumphant grin. "Do you see this, Kitty? This is the final data. We've got all we need on you two." He leaned in close, way too close for comfort. "Did you know that you're not legally human? That by law, basic human rights don't actually apply to you?"

I gulped, despite my best attempts to stay calm. "I… I'm human. One hundred percent human."

The boy giggled madly. "Oh, but you're _not!_ During the initial tests, we discovered traces of cat DNA in your blood. Which effectively makes you a nonhuman."

"Traces of cat. _Traces._"I could feel my hands curling into fists.

"It's enough, Kitty. Enough for the coroners." He came even closer, whispering: "Maybe you were human once upon a time, but you're not human anymore. And we don't need you anymore. So, Kitty…" He rocked back on his heels, toying with the gun for a moment. "Give me one good reason why I shouldn't just..."

He pressed the barrel against my forehead, and it was all I could do not to pull away – but doing that would surely have been suicide. Mokuba would haveabsolutely no hesitations whatsoever when it came to pulling the trigger – I could see it in his eyes. Here was a boy who wanted his brother back, and was willing to go through _anything_ to achieve that goal. He was ruthless, and he was desperate.

And so slowly, slowly, I held out my hands towards him, palms up. "Listen to me, Mokuba. We didn't do this to your brother. But… we do know how to make him all better."

"Make him… better…?" Mokuba paused for a long moment, then shook his head. "No. You can't fool me with that kind of talk."

"That's because you're the sort of guy who likes proof, aren't you? Come on, give me one chance."

"Huh. Like you're not going to just take it and run for the hills."

I smiled gently. "I could have done that well before now. I mean, Tristan here could have killed you at least six times, but he hasn't even tried once. He trusts that you won't shoot me, you see."

"Kill me? But… How could h–"A low growl behind Mokuba made him turn – then nearly fall over in his haste to get away from Tristan."Eyaah!" He swallowed, then raised the gun. "G–get away from me! I–I'll shoot!"

I laid a hand on his arm, pushing the weapon downwards. "Think. In the split second it takes for you to pull that trigger, he can be in the air and coming down on your throat. Chances are you'll miss, and even if you do get him, he can still kill you anyway."

Mokuba's gun hand was definitely shaking now, but he shook me off, raising the barrel again. "Don't you _dare_ try it, dog." The wolf growled low in reply. Took a single pawstep forwards, and I shivered. There was no way to tell whether it was Tristan, the wolf, or even Yami Marik controlling those strong jaws that could so easily tear the two of us apart…

"Um, Mokuba? How about this: Put the gun down. He's nicer when you're not pointing lethal weapons at him."

"Are you kidding me? With a gun, at least I've got a cha–"

"Relax. As long as you don't hurt me, he won't hurt you." It was all I could to keep my own voice non–shaky, actually; but I wasn't about to tell Mokuba that.

Wolves can't smirk, but I could swear that this one was trying to – and in my head, Tristan sniggered. –{You're both absolutely terrified. I can smell your fear.}–

"Shut up", I muttered under my breath, knowing that he'd be able to hear me easily.

For an instant, Mokuba looked like the scared little kid he was – then he took a deep breath, and looked me in the eye. Slowly, slowly, he put down the gun – and the wolf simply lay down on the floor in a heap. "So… how do I free my brother?"

I relaxed, grinning broadly. "Well, there's two ways. One is to lock Kaiba away for three days – let no–one see him or know that you're doing that. He'll go through horrible pain, but at the end he'll be back to normal."

–{Tell him that he should do that to everyone. Kaiba's probably had half the employees infested.}–  
"You should quarantine everyone, by the way – and I mean _everyone._ Bodyguards, employees, servants, the lot. See, any one of them could be…" I paused, looking for a word, "…infected, I suppose."

Mokuba shifted uneasily. "I don't have three days. Kaiba's got plans with this Sharing lot. He's gonna do something… something big. Tonight."

I grinned. "Well, that's what the second method's for."

"Which is?"

"You bring him to us, and we'll get him free." I blinked slowly. "But you cannot, under any circumstances, trust anyone here–"

"Unless they've been in quarantine for more than three days, right?"

"Yeah."

"You'll find that those guys who worked with you in the lab… They were all quarantined for four days before employment. Some went quite mad around the third day, come to think of it…" He shook his head. "Anyway, none of them have left the lab area. None of them are allowed to."

"How many?"

"Maybe twenty total."

I grinned. "You can count on them. Just don't trust anyone else."

He nodded. "You got it. I'll get them to bring my brother here… and… um…"

"We'll handle the rest."**  
**

* * *

**RYO  
**I stood at the door of the warehouse, placing the two frozen miniatures at the entrance, willing them to unfreeze. Seconds later, the dragon and the winged elf are moving around again.

_I… I guess this is it.  
_  
_Yes._

I tried again, one last time: _Couldn't you do it?_

_Yami Marik's Rod would sense me in an instant. Jounouchi would go insane from my prescence in the Ring… You've got to do this alone!  
_  
_Soul Exchange. That's the way out of this mess. And only I… Only I can…_

I made my way into the warehouse, careful to tread softly.

_If I'm lucky, Yami Marik stays distracted, and I get out fine. If I'm unlucky… then… No. Don't think about that. _

_Too late._

I sighed. What had I got myself into?  
_Duty_, I reminded myself. _Duty._

Swallowing hard, I walked over to my friend. Took a deep breath… and focused.

I'd never tried this before. Neither had Yami Bakura.

All I could do was pray that this would work.

* * *

**JOEY**  
I lay in a half–stupor, beaten and bruised but somehow still breathing.  
"H–hey… Can you hear m–me?"

Dazed as I was, I barely registered the figure stooping to my level. Someone untying my bonds. A cool hand brushed my brow, then pressed against my temple.I blinked and shuddered in response to the touch.  
"Wh–who… are…" I tried to force my bleary eyes to focus, but couldn't.  
"This might tickle a little bit… but it's all right, okay?"

And I was not surprised in the least when a blinding pain went through me. _  
_

* * *

**RYO  
**Joey slumped back, unconscious. I could feel his mind bubbling under my own, now that it was in storage inside the Ring.

_Now… I just… send my whole soul…  
My whole soul…_

An electric shock went through my body, and I felt like… just for a second… I was floating. I focused instantly on the blonde, exactly as Yami Bakura had told me to.

And in that moment, a thousand thoughts went through my head. I could die from doing this. Maybe my other half had been trying to kill me. Maybe-

_NO!_

It wasn't going to happen – I'd come this far, I wasn't going to give up now! With a silent howl, I flung myself at Joey's soulless body and–

**FLASH!**

* * *

**JOEY**  
I opened my eyes, despite never closing them – and now my vision was clear as day. I wasn't in pain, I wasn't tied up any more–

_Wait a sec!_

I stared at my shirt – blue and white stripes. It was the sort of size that should have been far too tight on me, but instead fitted perfectly – the sort of style that I would never be seen dead wearing (too neat), the sort of thing that I was one hundred percent sure that I'd never had in my cupboard…  
It was the sort of thing that Ryo Bakura would wear.

"What the…" I stopped. Gone was my usual rough accent. I sounded higher, more cultured. Come to think of it, I sounded exactly like…

"No _way._"

"It worked!" That was a ratherbruised bloke, tied up on the ground in front of me. He looked up at me with a happy smile…

_My _smile.

I stared at him, then at me, then back at him. "Is that you, Ryo?"

He blinked dumbly. "Y–yes."

"Okay… What the HECK did you do?" I was trying to sound angry, but Ryo's voice just made me sound whiny.

The teenager looked nervous – a ridiculous expression crossing my features. "Keep… K–keep your voice down. I–I swapped our, uh, souls." He brightened. "Now you've got the physical strength to get out of here, and I–", and here his arms suddenly bent oddly and thinned, the ropes now slipping off his wrists with ease, "–have the mental strength to morph and get out." He leaned over, tugging the bonds off now–shriveling ankles, then looked up at me. "Well, go on!", he hissed. "Yami Marik's practically right around the corner from us!"

I didn't move. "I'm… I'm not going unless you're with me."

Blonde hair went a creamy white, then thickened, flattening into coarse fur. "I'll be right behind you!", Ryo urged, even as the fur spread over his shoulders and down his arms; "Just _go!_"  
"No. You're _with _me, not behind me!", I insisted. I think the kid might have argued, if it hadn't been for the cords in his neck suddenly knotting and twisting under the skin – which I knew from experience would have rendered him utterly incapable of speech. I smirked – until the dog's muzzle was fully formed, he wouldn't be able to communicate. "Looks like I win, huh?"

Ryo just shook his head in what might have been disbelief, easing himself onto all fours to prepare for the next series of changes. With a loud series of cracks, his whole back began to flatten into a position parallel to the floor, and–

_"Well, hello there!"_ An evil laugh rang in the warehouse, as Yami Marik stepped from behind the shelves at the far end. _"Ryo Bakura! It's been a while!"_ I took a step backwards, moving away from him, but he simply advanced on me. _"I never did get to feel your pain, you know. Your precious liddle other self wouldn't let me have it..." _

Suddenly, he doubled over, and I could have sworn it was Marik staring out at us. "G–get moving!"

With a bizarre noise that was equal parts human yell and dog snarl, Ryo – the real Ryo – went flying past me. His body was an utter mess by this point – he was running on all fours, scratching human knuckles on the hard concrete of the pavement – but he was somehow managing.

Behind us, Yami Marik howled in rage, Marik screamed –  
And I ran.

* * *

**YUGI**  
I couldn't move. Couldn't morph – couldn't really think properly, either. All I could do was stare up at the golden light, reflected off my Puzzle. It was pretty.

Sometimes, Yami Marik would come. He'd pet me, hit me. Control me with his Rod, make me perform tricks for him. He talked often about trapping me as a ferret someday, when he had 'the others'… whoever 'the others' were. Sometimes, he'd ask me about someone named Ryo. I always dreaded that, because I couldn't answer. Body too tired, mind too slow. I'd cough a bit, and then he'd hit me again…

Then… The dream changed. Something that wasn't Yami Marik came to me. It was a dragon – yes, a tiny black dragon I felt I should know. Maybe I was hallucinating, but maybe I wasn't… I didn't really care anymore. Couldn't care anymore.

"Joey." The word popped into my mind unbidden, and I spoke it without meaning to. The word burned at the back of my throat, forcing me to cough, splutter, say it again: "J–Joey…"

Silence was the only reply I got.

Meanwhile, strong jaws snapped at the ropes binding me, flames licking them until they fell away. There was another little figurine, a person-bird. She fluttered up to the cord of my Puzzle, and between the two of them, they managed to take my beautiful Item off its hook, and drop it in my lap. And… and something wanted me to put it around my neck…

_Yugi!_

A voice… A voice, in my head. I stopped, wondering... no, couldn't wonder. Couldn't… think…

_Put me on._

A voice…

_He's coming back – do it NOW!_

"Hssaah!" And then – a plastic snake, gripping the cord in its mouth, getting it over my head somehow...

* * *

**YAMI MARIK**

I stood watching the two escapees run, unable to give chase. Marik was lashing out with all his strength, again and again, and I was stuck fighting him. With a roar, I managed to break his feeble grip. And next, I would break _him_–

_D-don't!_

My hands clenched into fists, and with a lurch I realized that I couldn't break Marik. Not just yet – I needed him alive. I hit him a few times, just to make myself feel a little better about that. And yet, even as I hit him, he still fought back and struggled with all his might.

_You can't do this! I won't let you!_

_Shut up! Did you think you were anything special?!_ That hurt him, he staggered back – and I easily overwhelmed him. I sneered, enjoying the twisted smile, simply loving the feeling of _making _it. It was _my_ smile. Mine.

I tossed Marik's feeble mind aside like a rag doll, and turned towards the door of the warehouse. The duo had long gone, but there was still one left. Yugi. The important one…

That was about when the massive paw landed on my shoulder. _"Ah… About time." _I smirked, turning around to look – and the grizzly bear sent me flying with a swift backhand to the face.

_"Y–you're polite… I'd have… killed me…" _I crawled a few steps, dragging myself over to the skylight inch by painful inch. Rolled over to stare upwards, and watch the final stage of my plan play out. The golden Puzzle touched my brow.

_"I don't want to see you any more, Yami Marik."_

Even with the Item in my face, even though I knew it was all over, I still laughed. Grinned up at him, licked my chops – if there was one thing I was, it was absolutely psychopathic to the end.

_"You'll see me again, Pharaoh."_

_"No."_ His grip tightened on the Puzzle held at my head; _"Not for a very long time."_

The Item glowed, and already I could feel myself being sapped of my strength. With a Herculean effort, I took a newspaper clipping from my back pocket, and put it in his hand. _"Read."_

I watched him pale as he read the clipping. _"Kaiba… No!"_ He waved it under my nose, desperate. _"What did you do?!"_

My vision failing, power draining away, I turned my eyes to the roof of the warehouse… and smiled. Pointed upwards, towards the skylight._"It's… it's… them. They c–came."_

Yami tilted his head at me. _"What?"_

_"S-see? Yeerks… Called by A-Anzu… me… yes… I – I won."_ I looked Yami in the eye, and found the energy to tilt up the edges of my lips in an ever-so-slight smile. _"You… Me…" _And out of my mouth, I managed to form just one word before I lost consciousness, fading back into the darkness:

_"Boom."_

* * *

**YAMI YUGI**

It was too late, I knew that already.

From the scrap of paper, I now knew that Kaiba was to make a huge announcement tonight… Kaiba, who now supported The Sharing.

Yami Marik lay at my feet, his soul gone – and Marik was still out cold. Joey and Ryo had been escaping from the sound of things; they couldn't have gotten further than a few blocks. Duke and Tristan… who knew where they'd gone.

And high above, engines screaming in protest, was a lone Yeerk spaceship, tangled in the power lines Yami Marik had strung all around the building. It snarled like an injured animal, but it was useless – it had been short circuited by the electricity, ensnared by the wires, and its efforts to free itself only set it ablaze. I could see and hear that it wasn't the only one, either – there were others, a whole fleet of ships trapped and now dying. I knelt beside Yami Marik, and looked up with him at his work. Deep inside, I knew that I wouldn't make it, not without leaving Marik's unconscious body behind to die. I was unlikely to make it either way – those wires were flimsy compared to the ship, they were snapping and burning through, there wasn't enough time to get out of the blast radius, not enough time to morph. And so I stayed, cradling the Egyptian in my arms as I watched the destruction.

_So… this was his final plan. _

With an awful noise, the big spacecraft fell; seemingly in slow motion, a magnificent fireball speeding towards the ground like a comet. For an instant as it plummeted to earth, it seemed to become a huge phoenix – or perhaps a real Winged Dragon of Ra. It went straight through the roof of the warehouse, came towards me, incinerating everything it touched...

And I simply stared, entranced.

* * *

**SERENITY**

"I've got to help him!", I yelled, speeding off towards the Yeerk craft. Yami hadn't noticed the trap yet, being wrapped up in chatting with Yami Marik, but it was in a very bad way – and it'd probably fall soon, crushing both him and the Egyptian.

"You're six inches tall! Come back!"

"Joey'll never forgive me if I don't save Yami!"

"And he'll never forgive _me_ if I don't save you!", Mai shrieked, flapping behind me with a snake wrapped around her neck like a freaky feather boa. She somehow managed to catch up with me, sitting on my back as the three of us shot towards the fireball; but it took an age to get there. Little wings weren't making me go particularly fast in a very big world – and so we only just arrived underneath the craft as the last supporting wires snapped, the whole wreck came blazing down–

And I acted without meaning to – something roared and howled inside me. "Black Fire Bullet!"

**BOOM!**

The ship was suddenly the same size as a basket ball to me, and my own Black Fire Bullet was simply enormous – it sent the spacecraft flying sideways and upwards. Two wing beats – just two – took me high into the air, and I caught a glimpse of Yami staring up at me in awe…

Whatever was doing this roared again, and I felt a different mind rising up as I flew on the thermals. It was… powerful. Strong. Impossible to resist.

And also, hungry.

"Uh… Serenity?"

"Ssss?"

Squeaking. Useless noises, too small to be a decent meal. Snapping my jaws, I looked for small moving objects on the ground. They were usually a tasty meal – and look, I could see one, too, three… I gave up after three, the black parts of the ground were simply crawling with moving objects, lots of colours to choose from.  
"RRRRrrr…"

"Oh, no. No, no no–"

There! A silver one, slowing to a stop in front of some red glittery things. A weakling!

"RAAARRRRRR!" With a roar, I dived – a hunting dive, talons out and ready to pick up the silver thing. In a moment, I'd be chowing down on a good day's meal…

"AUUUUUUUUUUGHHH!"


End file.
